[Are there benefits for catheter valves for catheter-associated quality of life? : Results of an investigation in 427 catheter wearers with life-long indication].

Background: In urology, a subset of patients with lifelong urine drainage are fitted with a catheter valve. Data on catheter-related quality of life (crqol) in this subset of patients are missing.

Aim: Clarification of the whether there are advantages for valve-aided catheters in comparison with continuous urine drainage in catheter wearers with a lifelong indication.

Methods: In all, 357 patients with a catheter with lifelong indication of continuous urine drainage from a previous study were compared with 70 valve-aided patients. The crqol was evaluated by a validated assessment with 25 items and five domains.

Results: There were statistically more patients with a suprapubic catheter than with a transurethral indwelling catheter (73.4 vs. 54.4%, p = 0.005), significantly more patients with bladder voiding dysfunction (73.5 vs. 52.6%, p = 0.003) and significantly more patients with small catheter sizes (p = 0.001). Crqol was altogether slightly impaired with a median score of 4.2 (no impairment indicated by 5 points) in valve-aided patients, but crqol was more impaired in valve-aided patients compared to patients with continuous drainage (4.4 points, n. s.). Some items demonstrated more problems dealing with urinary urge in valve-aided patients, but catheter-related pain was more often worse in patients with continuous drainage.

Conclusion: There is no clear evidence for an advantage of a catheter valve over a continuous urine drainage system. Thus, the decision regarding a catheter-valve system must be made individually according to the indication and the preferences of the patient.