Use of urinary catheters without an acceptable indication of use increases the likelihood of infection leading to greater morbidity and health care costs. Catheter-associated bacteriuria often leads to inappropriate antimicrobial use and secondary complications including emergence of antimicrobial-resistant organisms and infection with clostridium difficile. A previous study showed that physicians are often unaware of urinary catheterization among their patients. Use of urinary catheters has found to be inappropriate in up to 50% of cases, with urinary incontinence listed as the most common reason for inappropriate and continued placement of urinary catheters. Clinical practice guidelines support the removal or avoidance of unnecessary urinary catheters in order to reduce the risk of catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs).
Sources:
Bartlett JG. A call to arms: The imperative for antimicrobial stewardship. Clin Infect Dis. 2011 Aug;53 Suppl 1:S4-7. PMID: 21795727.
Gardam MA, et al. Overutilization of indwelling urinary catheters and the development of nosocomial urinary tract infections. Clin Perform Qual Health Care. 1998 Jul-Sep;6(3):99-102. PMID: 10182561.
Hooton TM, et al. Diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of catheter-associated urinary tract infection in adults: 2009 international clinical practice guidelines from the Infectious Diseases Society of America. Clin Infect Dis. 2010 Mar 1;50(5):625-63. PMID: 20175247.
Jain P, et al. Overuse of the indwelling urinary tract catheter in hospitalized medical patients. Arch Intern Med. 1995 Jul 10;155(13):1425-9. PMID: 7794092.
Peleg AY, et al. Hospital-acquired infections due to gram-negative bacteria. N Engl J Med. 2010 May 13;362(19):1804-13. PMID: 20463340.
Saint S, et al. Are physicians aware of which of their patients have indwelling urinary catheters? Am J Med. 2000 Oct 15;109(6):476-80. PMID: 11042237.
Related Resources:
Toolkit: Lose the Tube – A toolkit for appropriate use of urinary catheters in hospitals