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Anesthesia and Catheterization

For our latest “Ask the Patient” installment, we turn to a prospective patient that is concerned about the anesthesia process and subsequent catheterization with this question “When they are performing Prostiva, do they make it numb down there? Do you have to have a catheter put in and if so, for how long?”

Here’s Brandon’s Perspective

I think this is a really good question and one I didn’t have an answer to before the procedure. I really didn’t know what to expect other than the simple explanation the doctor gave me. To be honest I kind of zoned out when he told me what to expect.

For me, it was just like any minor procedure such as colonoscopy. I put on the gown that doesn’t close in the back and got an IV put in my arm. Then I was led to a room that had a chair with stirrups. Since I am a guy, this was a very strange position to be in considering my shoulders were more covered than my lower body. A nurse put a sheet between me and the work that would be performed and stuck a needle in the IV tube. A few seconds later I was out cold.* I was shaved and the whole procedure done without me feeling a thing.

I woke up later in a room with blankets over me. My wife and a nurse were by my side.

I personally did not get a catheter, but I know that is something men get if they can’t urinate after the procedure. They told me I had to urinate before I could leave and then pay close attention to it for the next 24-72 hours. As long as I didn’t have any problems emptying my bladder, then I wouldn’t need a catheter. I have had men tell me they had one for a day or two after but there is no way to know if you will or won’t until the procedure is done.

*Please note that the form of anesthesia employed is at the discretion of your urologist. Generally a local anesthetic or oral pain medication is administered to reduce any discomfort.

Brandon is a paid consultant for Urologix, Inc.