Innovating urinary catheter design: An introduction to the engineering challenge. (January 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Murphy, Cathy
• Is Part Of: Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. Volume 233:Number 1(2019)
• Page Start: 48
• Page End: 57
• Publication Date: 2019-01
• Subjects: Intermittent catheter -- indwelling urinary catheter -- patient safety -- quality of life -- biomedical devices -- bladder management; Biomedical engineering -- Periodicals; Medical instruments and apparatus -- Periodicals; 610.28
• DOI: 10.1177/0954411918774348
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0954-4119

Abstract

Every day, people around the world rely on intermittent and indwelling urinary catheters to manage bladder dysfunction, but the potential or actual harm caused by these devices is well-recognised. Current catheter designs can cause urinary tract infection and septicaemia, bladder and urethral trauma and indwelling devices frequently become blocked. Furthermore, the devices can severely disrupt users' lives, limiting their daily activities and can be costly to manage for healthcare providers. Despite this, little significant design innovation has taken place in the last 80 years. In this article current catheter designs and their limitations are reviewed, common catheter-associated problems are outlined and areas of design ripe for improvement proposed. The potential to relieve the individual and economic burden of catheter use is high.