Interventions for the Management of Bladder Spasms in Adults with Indwelling Urinary Catheters: A Nursing Practice-Oriented Systematic Review.
Gayatri Padval, Jasneet Kaur
PMID 41980254WHAT IT FOUND
In adults with indwelling catheters, nursing-led measures such as reducing balloon volume, fixation, electrical stimulation, and structured protocols were reported to reduce pain and spasms in small studies.
Consider these before drugs, especially in older adults.
Key findings
01Reducing catheter balloon volume lowered pain and catheter-related bladder discomfort scores.
02Transcutaneous electrical foot stimulation lowered postoperative pain and bladder spasm symptom scores compared with routine care.
03Evidence-based targeted nursing care, a bundle including staff training, preoperative patient education, psychological support, catheter fixation, rehabilitation exercises and antispasmodic medication when indicated, reduced bladder spasm incidence, frequency, duration and pain severity compared with standard care; the contribution of each component cannot be separated.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The paper reports both nine and ten included studies, so the final study count is unclear. Many included studies were single-center, small and had limited blinding, giving moderate risk of bias. Outcome measures and follow-up periods varied, preventing direct comparison or meta-analysis. Only English-language publications were included. Several nursing interventions were delivered as bundles, so the effect of any one component cannot be separated. Pharmacological effects were often short-term.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that a single nursing technique is proven to work for every catheterized adult. The review included small, heterogeneous studies, and some nursing packages combined staff training, patient education, psychological support, catheter fixation, rehabilitation exercises and medication, so the effect of each part cannot be separated.