Urinary Tract Infection
Urinary Tract Infection Causes:
- It occur when bacteria gets into your bladder or kidneys, causing symptoms such as painful urination, more frequent urination, lower abdominal pain or pressure, blood in your urine, or fever
- Because you empty your bladder by intermittent catheterization, you may be more likely than most people to get bacteria in your urinary tract.
- When a catheter is passed through the urethra, it can pick up bacteria from the skin and push it into the bladder where it can grow and multiply, especially if the urine remains in the bladder for a prolonged amount of time (more than four to eight hours)
Preventive measures:
- Although it is very difficult to prevent all urinary tract infections, a large number can be avoided by practicing good preventive measures:
- Hand hygiene remains the first and most important preventive measure. Be diligent about cleaning your hands with soap and water or alcohol - based hand cleanser before and after catheter insertion
- Empty your bladder at least once every six hours
- Drink enough fl uids to keep the urine volume between 300-400 ml (about 1-1/2 cups) at each catheterization
- Avoid bubble baths
