Early catheter removal after transurethral resection of the prostate.

Introduction: Post-operative care of transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) includes prolonged bladder irrigation that places a heavy burden on the nursing staff and a substantial strain on the budget. There is a trend towards early catheter removal after TURP even to the extent of performing it as a day case. We explored the feasibility and limitations of early catheter removal after TURP in our unit.

Design: Prospective study.

Setting: Department of Urology, The National Hospital of Sri Lanka (NHSL), Colombo.

Patients And Methods: The study was in a tertiary referral centre (NHSL), on 65 patients with a mean age of 67.5 years who underwent TURP for mild to moderate enlargement of the prostate, less than 25 g, with lower urinary tract symptoms. Post-operative irrigation was maintained by diuretics at operation or a short term saline irrigation in the operating theatre.

Results: 17 patients developed clot retention in the ward that was managed by irrigation for 12 to 24 h. 62 patients who had clear or minimally blood-stained urine were tried without catheter after 24 h. Only two failed to pass urine. Patients without other complications were discharged from hospital after 1 or 2 successful voidings on the same day. There were no readmissions with complications.

Conclusions: This study supports the feasibility of early catheter removal after a short irrigation period in TURP in the majority of patients with mild to moderate enlargement of the prostate without significantly increasing post-operative complications.