Caring for Your Biliary Drainage Catheter - Memorial Sloan ...

change it. Wet dressings are the major cause of skin problems. A hand held shower can help direct the water away
from the dressing.
Keep the tubing secured to your body with a UC strip at all times. When you are getting dressed, take care not to
tug on the catheter. Do not allow the tubing to become kinked by clothing such as pantyhose or a belt. Try not to
lie on your catheter when you sleep. This will prevent kinking of the catheter.
A Visiting Nurse Service referral will be made for you before you leave the hospital. This nurse will assist you and
your helper until you can manage the catheter care on you own.
Inspect the bile frequently. It should be flowing freely into the bag. It should always look the same. If there is a
decrease in amount, or if the bile’s color or sediments change, you may not be drinking enough fluids.
If you have an internal-external biliary drainage catheter, your doctor may want you to do a ‘capping trial’. A blue
Clave is put on the end of the catheter and you will no longer need a bag. This is done to see if all of the bile can
drain into your digestive system.
If you have a capped internal-external drainage catheter, you need to attach the catheter to a bag (assembled as
instructed above) if you have any of the following:
• Pain.
• Fever.
• Leaking around the catheter.
• Inability to flush the catheter.
Be sure to remove the stopcock on the catheter before attaching to a bag.
This will let the bile flow out externally. Call the nurse practitioner or fellow at the numbers listed at the end of
this booklet.
Conclusion
The biliary drainage catheter should decrease or relieve:
• Jaundice.
• Nausea.
• Vomiting.
• Itching.
If you have questions about caring for the catheter or adapting your lifestyle, please call us and ask to speak to a
nurse. We will do everything we can to help you.
Ordering Information
You can order supplies from General Stores at the hospital. You can also order directly from the company. You will
need a prescription to obtain pre-filled normal saline syringes. If your local pharmacy can not supply the syringes,
you can get these from the outpatient pharmacy at Memorial.
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