What are the complications of indwelling catheters?
The area where the catheter enters the body may become irritated and raw. It may become infected. In women the tube enters the urethra near the opening of the vagina. The opening of the urethra and the skin around the vagina can become red and raw from the rubbing of the tube. In men the end of the penis can become red, swollen, and sore from the catheter. If a man is uncircumcised, the foreskin can become irritated. Indwelling catheters can cause urinary tract infections. If you have a catheter and you develop 2 or more of the following symptoms, you should see your healthcare provider because you may have a urinary tract infection: fever shaking chills sweats lower abdominal pain back pain pain around the urethra cloudy, bad-smelling urine. Catheters may injure the urethra. For example, the urethra could be injured from tugging on the catheter tubing or bag. You may see a very small amount of blood making the urine look red or pink in the catheter if there has been a slight injury to
