Catheters

CATHETERS

  • A catheter is a tube that can be inserted into a body cavity, duct, or vessel. Catheters thereby allow drainage, injection of fluids, or access by surgical instruments.
  • The process of inserting a catheter is known as catheterization.  Catheter is a thin, flexible tube ("soft" catheter), however  they may be  larger, solid ("hard")catheter.
  • A catheter kept  inside the body, either temporarily or permanently, may be referred to as an indwelling catheter.
  • A permanently inserted catheter may be referred to as a permcath .

Uses

Placement of a catheter into a particular part of the body may allow

  • Draining urine from the urinary bladder as in urinary catheterization , e.g., the Foley catheter or even when the urethra is damaged as in suprapubic catheterisation .
  • Drainage of urine from the kidney by percutaneous nephrostomy
  • Drainage of fluid collections. e.g. an abdominal abscess
  • Administration of intravenous fluids, medication or parenteral nutrition with a peripheral venous catheter
  • Angioplasty , angiography , balloon septostomy ,and  balloon sinuplasty.
  • Direct measurement of blood pressure in an artery or vein
  • Direct measurement of intracranial pressure
  • Administration of anaesthetic medication into the epidural space, the subarachnoid space , or around a major nerve bundle such as the brachial plexus
  • Subcutaneous administration of insulin or other medications, with the use of an infusion set and insulin pump
  • A central venous catheter is a conduit for giving drugs or fluids into a large-bore catheter positioned either in a vein near the heart or just inside the atrium.
  • A Swan-Ganz catheter is a special type of catheter placed into the pulmonary artery for measuring pressures in the heart.
  • An umbilical line is a catheter used in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU) providing quick access to the central circulation of premature infants.
  • A Quinton catheter is a double or triple lumen, external catheter used for hemodialysis .
    • Cow – catheter – metal
    • Mare catheter – Gumelastic
    • C.V.P. catheter –
    • Oesophageal catheter
    • Foley catheter
    • Gunther’s catheter – guttural pouch in equines
    • Nasal oxygen catheter
    • Suction catheter
    • Urethral catheter
Last modified: Wednesday, 9 May 2012, 5:27 AM