Have you ever wondered, “When are coudé catheters required?” If so, you should learn more about this unique catheter type as well as why doctors may sometimes prescribe them.
What Is a Coudé Catheter?
A coudé catheter is a type of urinary catheter that features a slight curve or bend in the insertion tip. Using a coudé or curved tip catheter makes it easier for some men to thread the catheter past their prostate. Coudé tip catheters are also good for anyone with narrowing of the urethra and that have any blockages in their urethral pathway.
When Are Coudé Catheters Needed?
Jake Klein, MS, CPNP and Director of Urological Surgical Reconstruction and Continence Center and Continence Specialist at OU Medicine Department of Urology, is here with some answers.
According to Jake, here are a few examples of instances when someone may need to use a coudé catheter:
- Adults with prior prostate surgery or resection
- Young boys with posterior urethral valves
- Patients with either a urethral or stomal false passes
- Patients that have had chemo or radiation to the urethral area
- Males with urethral stricture disease secondary to hypospadais repairs or urethral trauma
Where to Buy a Coudé Catheter
180 Medical offers a variety of the top coudé-tip catheters. Coudé-tip catheter products come in intermittent catheter, hydrophilic catheter, or closed system catheter options. People who catheterize on a regular basis know that one size catheter does not fit all.
If you need a coudé catheter, you have different tip options, including olive tip, Tiemann tip, and/or tapered tip.
The olive-tip catheter has a tip that is shaped like a round ball, which is easier to insert past obstructions if any exist in the passageway. The olive tip allows you to get past tissue that a tapered tip might get caught on – such as the edge of urethral tissue.
The tapered tip can navigate through strictures and stomal hitches as they have more of a smooth upward point.
You can learn more about coudé catheters in our post about the basics, including how to use coudé catheters.
