ISC is not a new technique - it has been around for many years
- Egyptians used reeds drained into urns
- Romans used lead pipes
- Victorians used silver and lead catheters
- Many Jewish men suffered from sexually transmitted diseases and carried what were known as "piss pipes" in the rim of their tail hats
- Patients suffering spinal injuries were surviving due to improved medical care, but many patients died afterwards due to renal failure caused by repeated urinary tract infections, which were a common complication of in-dwelling catheters
The clean technique
- The clean technique was developed by Lapides and his colleagues in the USA in the early 1970s
Advantages of ISC
- Patient retains independence
- Urinary tract infections reduced
- Patient is in control of own bladder
- Normal sexual relationships
- No incontinence - no smells
- Significant protection from upper tract reflux (avoiding kidney failure)
- No longer the need for a permanent in-dwelling catheter, therefore preventing problems such as bladder neck damage and erosion of the meatus
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