Sweatpants while wearing catheter

I read on this forum that some men recommended wearing sweatpants while you have the catheter, as they are baggy and comfortable. Also, they recommended the kind with the zipper on the leg for easy access. Does anyone have a suggestion of the brand? I saw Champion on-line with a zipper but it doesn't look like the zipper goes very high up the leg. I assume we would want it up to the thigh. What do you think? Thanks Alice

Husband:
Age 60
No history of PCa in family
Treated for prostatitis since 2007
PSA 4.5
Biopsy 12/09: 8/12 cores had cancer 5% - 50%
Gleason 6
daVinci scheduled for 3/9/10 at UNC

I had just regular cotton sweat pants. I cut the elastic at the bottom of one leg for the ankle bag. That worked out fine.

I don't think you'd need a zipper that came all the way up the thigh. The tubing gets secured to the thigh, but you shouldn't need to have a zipper that goes all the way up there.

Mine had a yellow hose about 12" long out of the penis that comes to a y, that's were they inflate/deflate the cath. I attached the leg bag to my shin makes it easy to empty.

Neal

Swear pants are good for sitting around but when it came to walking, I would put on a pair of Jockey shorts underneath. You don't want the pants jerking the cath around

By the way, drawstring pants worked fine for me

Hay folks mind had bag that fit the ankle with a long tube to connected the tube from the penis. boy did i mark my boundry of my property .Ithink any loose fitting pj or he loungeing pants will do the trick. You will get the hang of it.Tread easy for a few days to you get confortable, be patient.
Deerhunter

As a long term catheter wear thought I would weigh in here. For starters, I only use the leg bag when I am leaving the house to go somewhere. I use the night bag or as some call, the big bag the rest of the time. So with the big bag on, I am either wearing boxers and a tshirt if no one is around, or will wear it with shorts if there's company or if I am justs going outdoors for a minute, like checking the mail, etc.

The two things that make mine bleed a lot are using the vacuum cleaner, which I do every day, or mopping floors, that makes me bleed a lot. If I walk more than a couple of big stores, like a Walmart, I end up bleeding a lot.

It is important to have plenty of slack in the cath when attaching it to your thigh, you have to think how it will be when you are walking, bending, or lying down. I use either disposable cath holders, they are useless once they get wet from a shower, or what I prefer, is the expensive kind that will last a month or more, and they have a swivel device, so that the tube moves with your natural movement. I can give a brand name if needed.

You learn real quick with a foley catheter (penis) about avoiding snags. I have to be careful around kitchen cabinets, because of the door knobs love to catch the tube. With the SP (suprapubic) cath, which exits below my navel, you are even more careful ,because a snag there really hurts much worse.

In all the times I have been on caths ,and still, I have never needed to use any kind of lubricant or cream or ointment. I am not circumsised, so I don't know if that is making the difference or not. Never had any problem with leakage, or oozing, not even in the long term situations.

Everytime I change bags from leg to big or big to leg, I wipe down the ends of the tube with achahol, this really helps keep down a chance of getting a UTI.

I have learned how to hide all the gear even under a fitted suit when I go for job interviews, no one is the wiser. Most of the time I am out in public, I wear this baggy pair of black casual slacks with loose legs. It does a good job of hiding everything, and one a couple of cases, the tube that connects from the cath to the leg bag has come loose, and at least the black pants hide any wetness until I can get it hooked up again.

Also, don't let the leg bag get too full, I empty when its at the half full level as a rule. The heavier it gets, the more it wants to pull down despite the bands holding it in place. And never put yourself in a position to fall asleep with the leg bag on, it can easily go back into the bladder contaminated. Urine is only sterile when its inside your bladder, the moment its out, its contaminated.

david in sc

hi alice sorry forgot to say the canterbury pants are about £35 over here.if you cant get them and you want me to i will check the postage for you .look after your man cheers barry

I found that sweats with pockets were handy when walking around the neighborhood. That way, if the bag slipped on my leg, I was able to adjust it without being too obvious. I wore the bag above the knee.

I used cotton sweat pants, and was comfortable with them.  I had no problems with my catheter and the doctor recommended lots of walking post-op, prior to the removal of the catheter - and I encountered no discomfort when walking.  I suspect the "problem" with the catheter (for most guys) is psychological more than anything else.  My catheter (the daytimne catheter) fastened to my shin.

Alice,

The good news is that it has been less than a year since my surgery and I can't remember a lot of catheter specifics.  I remember I had a lot of initial discomfort and that it was terribly painful by day 7.  I remember that I strapped the leg bag to the thigh.  My wife did a fantastic job of cleaning and sanitizing the bags for me.  As to what clothing was more comfortable, I think snug fitting briefs helped to keep extra movement to a minimum.  I did not purchase anything new for the occasion. 

post surgery no nos: vaccuuming, laundry, washing dishes, shopping,

yeses: slow walks, recliner with mp3 player and TV remote, extra toppings on ice cream

Dan

I wear Nike sweatpants with my catheter and leg bag .They are comfortable and dont show the leg bag up

I suggest to make a side cut (appr. 1 foot) of your cotton sweat pants - it will make it easire to wear your bag

Ali, we bought John a pair of nylon drawstring sports pants one size larger - no zipper. He found these very comfortable and wore them home from the hospital. The larger size allowed freedom of movement without tugging on the catheter tube and gave him extra room around the midsection to avoid pressing on the incisions or cutting into his waist since his belly was still a bit swollen from the surgery.

When home (with no company expected), John wore one of my old flannel nightgowns. He was petrified of tugging on the catheter the first few days home and we just couldn't think of anything for him to wear that would allow the catheter complete movement. So, I yanked out my old Lanz of Austria flannel nightie, slipped it over his head, and we were in business. He lived in that thing until the catheter came out about a week later. Don't have to tell you that once he no longer needed it, the nightie went into the rag bag!