The urinary catheter was inserted into the vagina and 80 ml of water was injected!

The urinary catheter was inserted into the vagina and 80 ml of water was injected!

Several days ago, a relative gave birth in the obstetrics department. Due to the immature cervical condition, a balloon foley catheter was used to mechanically stimulate cervical ripening. I saw that the so-called balloon used by the doctor was an ordinary double-lumen ureteral catheter inserted into the cervix. A total of 80 ml of normal saline was injected and left in the uterus for more than 10 hours. I marveled at the miraculous function of the urinary catheter, and I admired the doctor's imagination. After the author asked two classmates at the county hospital, they all used urinary catheters instead of cervical dilators. After opening the Wanfang website and searching, as expected, there are quite a few articles like this, mainly focusing on the economic benefits of urinary indwelling catheters in replacing cervical dilation balloons.

During the catheterization skills training for young nurses last month, when it was mentioned that the amount of water filled in the balloon should not exceed the marked capacity of the foley catheter, I asked: "What is the marked capacity of the foley catheter we use?" When?" Very few nurses answered this question correctly. In fact, there is a label on the packaging of every urinary catheter.

I said: "The maximum labeled capacity of the commonly used ordinary urinary catheter does not exceed 30 ml." At this time, Xiao W, an obstetric nurse, said: "No wonder when our department used a urinary catheter balloon to dilate the cervix, urinary catheters appeared. Balloon rupture situation.”

The mechanism of water bladder promoting cervical ripening

The water bag placed on the cervix can soften and expand the cervical canal. The water bag injected with normal saline can expand the uterine cavity, causing the posterior pituitary gland to increase the release of oxytocin. When the threshold concentration of oxytocin required to induce labor contractions is reached, it can cause Uterine contractions. At the same time, the insertion of a water bladder causes fetal membrane separation, decidual degeneration, and focal necrosis, causing the production and release of local prostaglandins, causing uterine contractions.