A prospective randomized trial to compare immediate and 24-hour delayed catheter removal following total abdominal hysterectomy.

OBJECTIVE

To assess whether early or immediate removal of a 12F in-dwelling Foley catheter after total abdominal hysterectomy affects the level of subjective pain assessment postoperatively.

DESIGN

Randomized controlled trial.

SETTING

University Hospital.

POPULATION: Seventy women underwent total abdominal hysterectomies for various benign gynecological diseases.

METHODS

Women were randomized to have the urinary catheter removed in the operating room after the surgical procedure or to have it removed on postoperative day 1.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome was patients' pain assessment and the secondary outcomes were rate of re-catheterization and symptomatic urinary tract infection.

RESULTS

There was no difference in the pain assessment between the two groups. A significantly higher number of urinary retention episodes requiring re-catheterization were found in the immediate removal group compared with the delayed removal group (20 vs. 0%; p= 0.011). The incidence of symptomatic urinary tract infection did not differ between the two groups.

CONCLUSIONS

There are pros and cons regarding the policy of one-day in-dwelling catheterization compared to immediate catheter removal.