An Easy Solution for Difficult Urethral Catheter: Three-Way Urethral Catheter Insertion Using a Guidewire Technique

Urethral catheter insertion is a skill taught to all medical students but often not practised for a multitude of reasons. The difficult catheter can be a clinical nightmare for the junior doctor, especially on call, and can lead to significant mortality and morbidity with suboptimal repeated attempts. The incorporation of a soft-tipped hydrophilic guidewire technique for the insertion of a two-way urethral catheter has been described in the literature and has the potential to reduce the morbidity and mortality of patients by making the insertion of a catheter less traumatic. Here, we propose and describe the insertion of a three-way urethral catheter, performed using the technique employed for the insertion of a two-way urinary catheter via the use of a hydrophilic guidewire, with similar outcomes. A hydrophilic soft-tipped guidewire to insert a three-way urethral catheter can be used in the wards, in the emergency department, and in a theatre setting. The district hospital in which this method was employed demonstrated a 100% success rate in the insertion of a urethral catheter (N = 15), with 26% of cases (four patients out of 15) having a three-way urethral catheter inserted using the soft-tipped hydrophilic guidewire method. Follow-ups of these patients showed that there were no complications or adverse effects experienced by the patients. The use of a soft-tipped guidewire approach to insert a difficult urethral catheter can reduce the financial burden on the healthcare system by eliminating costs due to harm/trauma caused by repeated unsuccessful urethral catheter attempts or those attempts that have been performed suboptimally and have led to potential patient harm. The use of a hydrophilic guidewire-assisted technique to insert a three-way urinary catheter is a safe and easy option for those who have had repeated unsuccessful attempts. The hydrophilic guidewire approach has the potential to reduce morbidity and mortality associated with urethral catheterisation and improve patient safety.