Archives of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, October 1992, Volume 73, #10, P. 983.

The Use of a Closed Intermittent Catheter System in Hospitalised Patients Following Spinal Cord Injury

MARY N. YOUNG,RN,MS (Rancho Los Amigos Medical Center, Downey, CA); Carol J. Bennett,MD; Helen Darrington, LVN

 SUMMARY

Intermittent catheterisation (IC) has gained wide acceptance for use in hospitalised patients following spinal cord injury (SCI). Infection rates of two closed systems were compared. The first system (1) consisted of an enclosed catheter. The second system (2) consisted of the above plus a urethral introducer tip, designed to bypass the first centimetre of the urethra. Gender, level of injury, and bladder management were similar in all groups. From October through November 1988, a total of 6,683 catheterisation were performed using system 1. The total number of infections in this was 61, for an infection rate of 0.91. This was contrasted to the 2nd closed system, which was analysed August through September 1990, when a total of 7,402 catheterisation were performed. Fifty-four infections were identified, for an infection rate of 0.73. The second system was analysed in December 1991, when 3,543 catheterisation were performed and 21 infections were identified, with an infection rate of 0.61 (p,.02). In conclusion, the second system resulted in a significantly reduced infection rate in SCI patients on IC. Favourable results with this unit may be due to the system design intended to reduce contamination from the distal urethra