Help! My catheter is not draining!

9th January 2020

Help! My catheter is not draining!

Welcome back to LINC Medical’s series of blogs designed to help catheter users and their carers.

Do you have problems with your catheter draining slowly or not at all? This is a common issue that affects many catheter users but can easily be avoided using a few simple steps, outlined in this blog.

From time to time you may notice that your catheter seems to be draining slowly or not at all. It is always a good idea at this time to gently and slowly move the catheter around to see if this helps with the flow of urine. If that doesn’t help, go through the following checklist:
• Straighten out any bends or kinks in the tubing
• Make sure the catheter bag is below the level of your bladder
• Physically move yourself around, by going for a walk for example
• Make sure you have been drinking enough fluids
• Take a look at the catheter tube and make sure there is no grit or sediment blocking it

If these steps do not work and you do not feel dehydrated then your catheter may be blocked if it is not draining. A blockage would mean that your bladder will start filling up and urine could eventually go back up to your kidneys, causing damage. Although it would take hours for this to happen it is always best to seek medical attention right away rather than assuming that the problem will fix itself.