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Foley vs. suprapubic catheter during & after RALP?
Prostate Cancer | Last Active: Jan 28 1:31pm | Replies (4)Comment receiving replies
Like a number of things with surgery, it's often either surgeon's preference, or there's a physical reason why one can be done & the other can't - for instance, if the urethra has previous surgical scars or is too small to accommodate a catheter. But sometimes it's just what the surgeon is used to doing.
Replies to "Like a number of things with surgery, it's often either surgeon's preference, or there's a physical..."
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@peterj116 I studied this a little more, and it seems that a Foley catheter is still also used, and that the only proven advantage of also installing a suprapubic catheter is patient comfort, by removing the Foley as soon as the next morning after the surgery at 10am .
One study showed increased continence using this method, but not enough data to really draw any conclusions.
On one hand, it would seem as if leaving the Foley in for more than a day or two would aid in healing properly...with a "stent" in place as opposed to without...but on the other hand is damage done to the urethra upon removal if you leave it in for 7-11 days and then have to painfully force it out?
In any event, the only option currently commonly available is the 7-11 day period, so at least that is one decision that I don 't have to concern myself with.