title: A rare complication: misdirection of an indwelling urethral catheter into the ureter.
abstract: We report 3 patients with the rare complication of an indwelling urethral catheter misdirected into the ureter. This is the largest series to date. Patients were referred to us for a variety of reasons following exchange of their chronic indwelling urinary catheters. CT in all cases demonstrated the urinary catheters residing in the left ureter. The ages of the patients were 37, 67 and 81 years old. All patients suffered from neurogenic bladder. Two patients were female, one was male, and 2 of the 3 had a sensory disorder inhibiting their pain response. The catheters were replaced with open-end Foley catheters. Extensive follow-up CT scans were obtained in one case, demonstrating improvement of hydronephrosis and no evidence of ureteral stenosis. Cystoscopy in this patient demonstrated normally positioned and functioning ureteral orifices. Although the placement of an indwelling urethral catheter is a comparatively safe procedure, one must keep in mind that this complication can occur, particularly in female patients with neurogenic bladder. CT without contrast is a noninvasive, definitive diagnostic tool.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Okayama 700-8558, Japan.
authors.forename: Tsutomu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ishikawa
authors.forename: Motoo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Araki
authors.forename: Takeshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hirata
authors.forename: Masami
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.forename: Shin
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ebara
authors.forename: Toyohiko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.forename: Yasutomo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nasu
authors.forename: Hiromi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kumon
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002408:Catheters, Indwelling; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D014513:Ureter / Q000293:injuries*; D014521:Urethra; D014546:Urinary Catheterization / Q000009:adverse effects*; D062885:Urinary Catheters