The efficacy of noble metal alloy urinary catheters in reducing catheter-associated urinary tract infection

BACKGROUND: Catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) is the most common device-related healthcare-acquired infection. CAUTI can be severe and lead to bacteremia, significant morbidity, prolonged hospital stay, and high antibiotic consumption. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In this study, we evaluated the CAUTI-reducing efficacy of noble metal alloy catheters in sixty patients (thirty per group) in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the King Fahad Hospital in Saudi Arabia. The study was a single-blinded, randomized, single-centered, prospective investigation that included patients using urinary catheters for 3 days. RESULTS: A 90% relative risk reduction in the rate of CAUTI was observed with the noble metal alloy catheter compared to the standard catheter (10 vs. 1 cases, P = 0.006). When considering both catheter-associated asymptomatic bacteriuria and CAUTI, the relative risk reduction was 83% (12 vs. 2 cases, P = 0.005). In addition to CAUTI, the risk of acquiring secondary bacteremia was lower (100%) for the patients using noble metal alloy catheters (3 cases in the standard group vs. 0 case in the noble metal alloy catheter group, P = 0.24). No adverse events related to any of the used catheters were recorded. CONCLUSION: Results from this study revealed that noble metal alloy catheters are safe to use and significantly reduce CAUTI rate in ICU patients after 3 days of use.