Management of urinary catheters following hip fracture

To examine current practices and factors associated with outcomes of urinary catheter removal ('trial of void' or TOV) in patients following hip fracture.

Retrospective file audit of patients discharged over a three-year period with a diagnosis of recent hip fracture.

There were 133 TOVs in 310 patients. Of the 78 TOVs occurring in the aged care rehabilitation hospital, 50% were successful. Adherence to the hospital's TOV guideline was documented infrequently. TOV outcome was not related to interval since catheter insertion, constipation or inability to mobilise. Multivariate analysis showed that dementia was independently associated with the presence of an in-dwelling catheter (IDC) on discharge and that patients discharged with an IDC had a higher probability of residential care placement.

Practices in managing TOVs are inconsistent. No potentially modifiable predictors of TOV success were identified. The presence of an IDC has implications for discharge destination.