Catheterization GA or Not?

[Piper2017]

I just have a question about how your kids got on if they had urodymamics tests done with catheterization and did they tolerate tube getting put in bladder without getting too upset?

One Doctor told me that a 7 year old wouldn't tolerate it being put in so they would give her a general anaesthetic and put it in that way but latest consultant said they would do it with giving her no anaesthetic so I'm confused.

My concern is if it hurts or is traumatic for her she will lose her trust in the nurses and doctors and depending on the results of the urodymamics she is going to have either PTNS or Botox injections and I don't want her to be put off them if this procedure goes badly.

[MrsSquirrel]

Following this as we are scheduled for the same in the autumn for our son who is 9, and he is also possibly going to have botox/PTNS. Our consultant said it was uncomfortable but not painful however I know grown men who have cried! He said they have a 99 per cent success rate. I still feel pretty wobbly about the whole thing. They said they get better clearer results if child is conscious as they can give verbal feedback on when they feel bladder is full.

[Piper2017 in reply to MrsSquirrel]

The thing is the other consultant was going to put tube in under anaesthetic then wake her up and do the tests so she would be able to give verbal feedback.im really unsure as a lot of people on another website said defo GA or at the very least gas + air.

[Char2007]

Hi there , my daughter had this done last week , it’s the 2nd time she’s had it done now , and they do have gas and air ready and available in the room if it’s uncomfortable, and it’s best to be awake during the procedure so they can tell them when they need a wee or if they can see at the higher frequencies if they are leaking without knowing , or if they have any sensation at all of the bladder being full, my daughter had this done last summer , followed by Botox in the August and she had to have another lot of Botox in the November as it wore off so quickly because her bladder was so overactive and spasming, and they repeated last week to see if the Botox has changed anything , the results have came back better than the first results but he said they are still not good, the first 6 weeks after the Botox was like a dream come true but it wears off too quickly on her bless her , hope this helps .

[Piper2017 in reply to Char2007]

Thanks for that info Char2007 it's always helpful to hear from people that have been through a procedure to know what lies ahead.

[Charlie5angel]

HI the, sorry for the late reply but I can totally relate to this too, my daughter had to be first catheterised when she 8 for a functional MRU and I won’t lie to you but it was incredibly traumatic for her, we were never offered the GA as they thought she would be ok but she had gas and air but it still took up to half an hour to put in, my daughter suffers from anxiety and she is High functioning autism, so she likes to know every single detail bless her, I think everyone has different experiences but we were unlucky on that day as they getting a bit forceful with her and telling her that babies didn’t make that much fuss, we were really upset about the way she was treated, she’s the same now 6 years on and any kind of of investigation and operation or change of catheter, it’s still so traumatic as the first time, I really hope things have changed and nurses attitudes to children who suffer from ASD and anxiety as we now have to have play therapists involved on anything she has to have done now, I wish you all the very best of luck and I didn’t want to frighten you but just pointing out that that it can be traumatic for some children, I just wish if it had been handled better on that day 6 years ago for my daughter, her anxieties over all of this wouldn’t be so bad, she has a catheter in her belly now as there was no way she could self catheterise, best of luck to you all xx

[Piper2017 in reply to Charlie5angel]

Charlie5angel,Very sorry to read how badly your daughter was treated,how traumatic for her.i am very worried about my daughter being frightened and her anxiety levels then being worse for her for every other procedure in the future.i just think if it is painful she will completely freak out and I don't know how I'll be able to calm her down in that situation.

[Charlie5angel]

I think it’s hard for us parents to watch your child to go through anything like this, all the advice I can offer is to be calm and relaxed as possible, if she sees you are worried and frightened about it, they will pick it up from you, deep breathing from the gas and air are wonderful as my daughter has discovered, the deeper the better as it puts them in a bit of a sleepy state, talk to her the whole time reassuring her, keep praising every single step as it helps if they feel in control, apparently it’s a bit stingy the first second it enters but the more relaxed she is it will be fine, it doesn’t have to go in too far, the catheter itself looks really long but in my daughters experience it really only goes in about 2-3inches so it’s not as scary as it looks, ask to speak to a play therapist at the hospital and they can show her with the special teddies/dolls they have to show her what’s it’s like, we had all this and it helps them to know exactly what’s happening, good luck and I’m sure she’ll be fine, and to you mummy 😊 xx

[Piper2017]

Thanks for those tips,much appreciated