Every Catheter Has a Silver Lining

Study proves silver-coated catheters reduce urinary tract infections

Did You Know?

Silver’s unique molecular structure makes it one of the oldest, most effective means of killing microorganisms. Ancient Egyptians used to throw silver coins into wells to make water more drinkable—the precursor to modern wishing wells.

Silver ions have a positive charge that kills microorganisms, but isn’t toxic to humans. They’re now being incorporated into items from stents and cell phone covers to socks and shirts. Even professional tennis player Anna Kournikova sports silver threads in her shirts to kill odor-causing bacteria.

More than 20 percent of all hospitalized patients nationwide have a urinary catheter inserted during their stay, and almost 3 percent of those patients acquire a urinary tract infection. “Historically, hospital officials do not focus on urinary tract infections because they are not associated with high morbidity and mortality,” says Terry Burger, R.N., director of infection control and prevention. “Nonetheless, we felt it was important to explore opportunities to reduce our numbers.”

Evidence showed catheter-associated urinary tract infections potentially could be reduced by using silver-coated urinary catheters. So a year and a half ago, we started using silver-coated catheters exclusively. Then a research team, including Burger and infection control program coordinator Deborah Fry, evaluated the switch to ensure positive outcomes.

Research question: Is there a reduction in catheter-associated urinary tract infections following a hospital-wide implementation of silver-coated urinary catheters?

Population studied: Patients 18 and older at LVH-Cedar Crest and LVH-Muhlenberg with urinary catheters while hospitalized. The study excluded outpatients, pediatric patients, transitional skilled unit patients and patients who received a specialty catheter.

Study design: Over three months, a research team tracked how many patients with silver-coated catheters acquired urinary tract infections. This data was compared to the same three-month period one year earlier when the standard noncoated latex urinary catheters were used.

Principal findings: Urinary tract infections associated with catheters dropped 25 percent during the defined time.

Applications to practice: Reduction in catheter-associated urinary tract infections enhances patient satisfaction, reduces costs and length of stay, and eliminates excessive antibiotics.

This page last updated 2/12/08 04:08 PM