Research to evaluate treated catheters

About one in four patients in hospital need a urinary catheter for a short while, which can cause a urine infection in about 7% of them - amounting to about 30,000 patients per year in the UK. Catheters containing antibiotics or antiseptics may help to reduce this risk, but they are expensive and it is unclear whether the increased costs are matched by better health.

The £1.4 million study will target patients who only need a catheter for a short time (less than two weeks) to find out whether a urine infection occurred. Researchers will then compare the costs and benefits of each type of catheter to see which one is best for routine use in the NHS. Researchers also aim to find out whether treated catheters might particularly benefit specific subgroups of patients, such as elderly patients and those in intensive care who are particularly vulnerable to infection.

The research is being commissioned by the National Institute for Health Research's Health Technology Assessment (NIHR HTA) programme and is led by Professor James N'Dow of the University of Aberdeen.