Abstract / Summary
Abstract Purpose We aimed to develop a safe, convenient, and novel treatment strategy to reduce urethral pain using a drug-injectable catheter set with regular lidocaine gel injections. Materials and methods A total of 87 patients with suspected bladder cancer were randomized into two groups. Following transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TURB), a conventional 22Fr 3-way catheter was inserted in the control group, while a 22Fr drug-injectable catheter was inserted in the treatment group. In the treatment group, 4 cc of lidocaine gel was regularly injected into the urethral lumen using the drug-injectable catheter set. The primary endpoints were the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) scores at 1, 6, 12, and 24 h postoperatively, as well as the patient-reported satisfaction score. Results Baseline characteristics did not differ significantly between the two groups. The treatment group demonstrated significantly lower VAS scores at 6 h (2.6 vs. 3.6, p = 0.001) and 24 h (2.1 vs. 2.9, p = 0.001) post-surgery, with a trend toward a lower score at 12 h (2.6 vs. 3.2, p = 0.067). Patient satisfaction with the pain management strategy was significantly higher in the treatment group than in the control group (3.7 vs. 3.2, p = 0.015). However, no significant differences were observed in analgesic consumption for urethral pain between the groups throughout the study period. No unexpected adverse events were reported. Conclusions A novel drug-injectable urethral catheter set with regular 4 cc lidocaine gel injections safely reduced Foley catheter-induced urethral pain for up to 24 h post-surgery compared to the standard approach, although analgesic requirements remained similar. This novel strategy could be particularly beneficial for male patients requiring short-term Foley catheterization. (Trial registration: KCT0008737, 2023–08-25).