1. A tubular instrument to allow passage of fluid from or into a body cavity or blood vessel. SEE ALSO: line (4). 2. Especially a c. designed to be passed through the urethra into the bladder to drain it of retained urine. [G. katheter, fr. kathiemi, to send down]
- acorn-tipped c. a c. used in ureteropyelography to occlude the ureteral orifice and prevent backflow from the ureter during and following the injection of an opaque medium.
- angiography c. a thin-walled tube suitable for percutaneous insertion and power injection of contrast media for radiography; c. diameter is measured on the French scale. See Seldinger technique.
- balloon-tip c. a single- or double-lumen tube with a balloon at its tip that can be inflated or deflated without removal after installation; the balloon may be inflated to facilitate passage of the tube through a blood vessel (propelled by the bloodstream) or to occlude the vessel in which the tube alone would allow free flow; such catheters are used to enter the pulmonary artery to facilitate hemodynamic measurements. SEE ALSO: Swan-Ganz c..
- bicoudate c., c. bicoudé (bi-koo-da′) an elbowed c. with a double bend. [bi + Fr. coudé, bent]
- Broviac c. a type of long-term central venous c. with an external port for administration of medication.
- brush c. a ureteral c. with a finely bristled brush tip that is endoscopically passed into the ureter or renal pelvis and by gentle to-and-fro movement brushes cells from the surface of suspected tumors.
- cardiac c. SYN: intracardiac c..
- central venous c. a c. passed through a peripheral or central vein, ending in the superior vena cava or right atrium, for measurement of central venous pressure or for infusion of hyperosmolar solutions.
- c. coudé (koo-da′) a c. with an angular bend near the beak; used to rise over prostatic obstruction. SYN: elbowed c., prostatic c.. [Fr. coudé, bent]
- c. à demeure (a-dem-ër′) an obsolete term for a c. that is retained for a considerable period in the urethra. [Fr. demeurer, to dwell]
- double-channel c. a c. with two lumens, allowing irrigation and aspiration or injection and pressure measurement. SYN: two-way c..
- Fogarty embolectomy c. a c. with an inflatable balloon near its tip; used to remove emboli and thrombi from blood vessel s or to remove stones from the biliary ducts.
- Gouley c. a solid curved steel instrument grooved on its inferior surface so that it can be passed over a guide through a urethral stricture.
- intracardiac c. a c. that can be passed into the heart through a vein or artery, to withdraw samples of blood, measure pressures within the heart's chambers or great vessels, and inject contrast media; used mainly in the diagnosis and evaluation of congenital, rheumatic, and coronary artery lesions and to evaluate systolic and diastolic cardiac function. SYN: cardiac c..
- Malecot c. a two- or four-winged c..
- Nélaton c. a flexible c. of red rubber.
- olive-tipped c. a ureteral c. with an olive-shaped tip, used to dilate a constricted ureteral orifice; larger sizes are also used for dilating or calibrating urethral strictures.
- pacing c. a cardiac c. with one or more electrodes at its tip which can be used to artificially pace the heart.
- pigtail c. a c. with a tightly curled end and multiple side holes to reduce the impact of the injectant on the vessel wall or to remain in a chamber or space for drainage.
- Robinson c. a straight urethral c. with two to six holes to facilitate drainage, especially in the presence of blood clots which may occlude one or more openings.
- self-retaining c. a c. so constructed that it remains in urethra and bladder until removed, e.g., indwelling c.; Foley c..
- Swan-Ganz c. a balloon-tipped flexible c. commonly used in the treatment of critically ill patients; introduced via a major peripheral vein, usually jugular or subclavian, and floated under pressure waveform guidance, with or without fluoroscopy, sequentially through the right atrium, right ventricle, and pulmonary artery, ultimately to wedge, when the balloon is inflated, in a small arterial branch where the tip measures pressure-transmitted retrograde from the left side of the heart, which is assumed to represent left ventricular end-diastolic pressure; side holes allow measurement of central venous pressure; with the balloon deflated, c. measures pulmonary artery systolic, diastolic, and mean pressures; also allows infusion via c.; some catheters are fitted with pacing electrodes. SYN: pulmonary artery c..
- two-way c. SYN: double-channel c..
- vertebrated c. a c. made of several segments moving on each other like the links of a chain.
- winged c. a soft rubber c. with little flaps at each side of the beak to retain it in the bladder.
* * *
cath·e·ter 'kath-ət-ər, 'kath-tər n a tubular medical device for insertion into canals, vessels, passageways, or body cavities for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes (as to permit injection or withdrawal of fluids or to keep a passage open)
* * *
n.
a flexible tube for insertion into a narrow opening so that fluids may be introduced or removed. Urinary catheters are passed into the bladder through the urethra to allow drainage of urine in certain disorders and to empty the bladder before abdominal operations.
* * *
cath·e·ter (kathґə-tər) [Gr. kathetēr] 1. a tubular, flexible, surgical instrument that is inserted into a cavity of the body to withdraw or introduce fluid. See also cannula. 2. urethral c.
Catheter inserted into the abdomen.
Medical dictionary. 2011.