This tube, which in medical terms is called the catheter, is used to drain the bladder. It is placed into the bladder either through the urethra, most commonly, or through the skin above the pubic bone. This catheter, called the Foley Catheter has a balloon at the tip it has two channels. One channel is to drain the urine and the other channel is to inflate the balloon at the tip of the catheter as illustrated. Normally, a healthcare worker, physician, or nurse will take a syringe filled up with water or saline and connect it to the side port which has the valve and inject that into the side port which will lead the saline or water into the balloon which will inflate. This will be about normally about a balloon that is half an inch in diameter. The valve and the port it is a --- valve however it does shut off if you remove the syringe. If the syringe is removed the water in the balloon will stay in the balloon and this prevents the catheter from sliding out of the bladder. Placing a catheter in a female is much easier than placing it in the male especially if the male patient has had surgery in his urethra and prostate. It is also a dangerous procedure and should be done by a well-trained nurse, physician, or urologist. Sometimes, it is impossible to put one in because of serious scarring in the urethra. The doctor may then have to take the patient to surgery to be able to place this catheter after placing in wires and guides into the bladder.

Removing the catheter

This is very important to remove the water from the balloon by either using a syringe in the valve or simply by cutting the stem of the catheter. This will make the balloon leak out the saline that is in it and it will collapse. Then the catheter actually should slide out with ease. Sometimes this cannot be done because the tube that connects from the port to the balloon is blocked or the tip of the Foley catheter is calcified so badly it cannot be removed easily. Normally this would be a urologist who is dealing with this situation. It is very important for the patient to not pull on the catheter. He will pull out the balloon with the catheter and cause severe damage to the prostate and urethra so much so that nurses may not be able to replace this. So again it will take an urologist to get the patient under local anesthesia or general anesthesia. Most Foley catheters should be exchanged in about fifteen days. Most of them will cause bladder colonization with bacteria. There sometimes will be very serious infections. The best way to prevent that will be to clean where the Foley catheter enters the skin with soap and water 2-3 times a day. This has been known to prevent infections in the Foley catheter.

 This tube, which in medical terms is called the catheter, is used to drain the bladder. It is placed into the bladder either through the urethra, most commonly, or through the skin above the pubic bone. This catheter, called the Foley Catheter, has a balloon at the tip. It has two channels. One channel is to drain the urine and the other channel is to inflate the balloon at the tip of the catheter as illustrated. Normally, a healthcare worker, physician, or nurse will take a syringe filled up with water or saline and connect it to the side port which has the valve and inject that into the side port which will lead the saline or water into the balloon which will inflate. This will  normally be a balloon that is about a half an inch in diameter. The valve and the port  is a valve however it does shut off if you remove the syringe. If the syringe is removed the water in the balloon will stay in the balloon and this prevents the catheter from sliding out of the bladder. 

Placing a catheter in a female is much easier than placing it in the male especially if the male patient has had surgery in his urethra and prostate. It is also a dangerous procedure and should be done by a well-trained nurse, physician, or urologist. Sometimes, it is impossible to put one in because of serious scarring in the urethra. The doctor may then have to take the patient to surgery to be able to place this catheter after placing in wires and guides into the bladder.