Foley catheter erosion through bladder wall causing intraperitoneal bladder injury: a case report

Bladder perforation due to indwelling catheters is regarded to be a very rare incident. Most cases of catheter-induced rupture were in patients with chronic catheterization due to chronic bladder diseases. An 80-year-old male with neurogenic bladder on chronic catheterization presented to the emergency room with abdominal pain and anuria. On CT, the tip of the catheter was eroding through the bladder into the peritoneum. The patient underwent a laparotomy with adhesiolysis. The tip of the Foley catheter was seen eroding through the bladder dome. A new open tip catheter was inserted per urethra to prevent the catheter tip from eroding again through the bladder wall. Bladder erosion or rupture is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Our case demonstrates the deleterious effects of chronic catheterization and the need for a high level of suspicion when dealing with such cases.