kylisa
04-22-2009, 09:01 AM
Well, the ALS doctor has finally ordered my mother to have a catherer put in starting next week. My father talked with the hospice nurse yestereday and that is what she told him. My father neglected to ask her if my mother will still be able to sit on the bedside potty for bowel movements. I know there are some here that have catherers so, I hope you can answer this question for us. Can you still sit on potty for bowel movements if you have a catherer?
Yes. Just be sure good techniques are used for cleaning to prevent urinary tract infections.
Remember: for ladies, front-to-back wiping. (sorry gentlemen)
John1
04-22-2009, 12:37 PM
Might be time to order a bidet for your toilet.
kylisa
04-22-2009, 04:52 PM
Will moving her around not dislodge the catherer?
KEDASO
04-22-2009, 07:14 PM
Hi Kylisa,
The catheter tube is kept inside the bladder by a balloon that is filled with sterile water.
You can move around all the time with it. When they put the catheter in, after, they put an adhesive clip to secure the tube to the thigh, to further help from the tube being yanked on.
Yes, you can sit on the pot-chair for bowel movements.
I have a good Urologist. He told me that no matter how careful you are, a Urinary Tract Infection, (UTI), will usually always show up if a Urinalysis is done.
However, he does not believe in over-medicating with antibiotics--only when true symptoms would show up, such as painful urination, pain in bladder area, or fever, does he then prescribe an antibiotic. I personally have no feeling at all in that area, and the only way I can tell when I have a true UTI, is when I get severe painful bladder spasms. But then I just take a strong antibiotic, and the spasms go away.
Do try to keep it as clean as possible.
One other note--while relaxed and in bed, the catheter is no problem. But if you are sitting up for a while, you may notice leakage from around the catheter tube itself. There is nothing wrong--it's just the way it is. What I do, is put a 4 x 4 gauze sponge taped around the tube, to catch any leakage, and change it daily.
Hope this helps.
KEDASO
(Ken)
No; unless it is really pulled harded, it will stay in place.
After the catheter is inserted, sterile saline is put into a sort-of "inner tube" near the tip of the catheter to inflate a "balloon" and that will hold it in place.
Adhesive tape can also be wrapped around the cath and then taped to the leg to further prevent pulling while moving around.
You can sit, stand and walk around freely with a catheter in place !
