Intravenous catheters

Intravenous catheter administration has long ago become a routine medical procedure. More than 500 million of peripheral venous catheters are used in the world annually. However, in Ukraine due to the insufficient experience of application and maintenance of peripheral venous catheters, central veins were unreasonably widely catheterized. As modern practice proves, the majority of the I.V. therapy kinds earlier made through central catheters are more expedient and safe when made with the help of peripheral I.V.catheters.

Peripheral I.V. catheter is a medical device put into a peripheral vein, which provides access to a blood channel.

Indications:

• medicine injection to patients unable to take them orally or in case of need of fast and exact medicine injection in an effective concentration (especially when medicine can change its properties while being consumed orally);
• frequent courses of I.V. therapy at chronic invalids;
• stream (bolus) injection of medicines, for instance, injection of antibiotics (according to manufacturer's instruction for use);
• invasive blood pressure monitoring;
• blood sampling for clinical research;
• blood vessel access in urgent conditions (fast venous access in case simultaneous urgent injections of medicine or high speed injection of solutions are needed);
• blood agents transfusion;
• parenteral nutrition (except for lipid containing mixtures);
• body rehydration.

Foley Catheters

Foley catheters were developed by Frederik Foley, the surgeon who worked in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1930s when he yet was a medical student. His original project was picked up by the businessman Bard Marri Hillom, New Jersey, who made the first pre-production models and named them in honor of the surgeon.

Foley Catheters are flexible (usually latex) tubes, which are inserted into the urinary bladder through urethra for vesical catheterization or for urine removal. Foley Catheter remains inside the bladder with the help of a balloon on a tip. The balloon is usually filled with physiological saline or distilled water.

There are two most widely used kinds of balloon volumes: 5ml and 30ml. Foley Catheter circumference is measured in Frenches (FRANC). The most widely used Foley catheters are from FRANC 10 up to FRANC 28 (1 FRANC is equivalent 0.33 mm).

There are several subtypes of Foley Catheters. The tip has several apertures which allow free bladder cavity draining.
3-way catheters are mainly used during urinary bladder post-operational therapy, in cases of prostate cancer or prostate surgery. This allows active draining of the bladder cavity and additional irrigation of the walls with antiseptic solution, when necessary.

Indications

А - draining funnel;

В - balloon inflating aperture;

С - air valve (check valve);

Д - cover;

Е - balloon;

К - additional aperture for instillations (3-way catheter).