Painless Removal of External Male Catheter? (ouch)

Ever since my first contests and XC flights I have been wearing an
external male catheter. Putting these things on is easy. Taking them
off is another matter altogether. I know they have to be sticky or
they might fall off at an inopertune time but jeez-la-wheez they sure
can stay stuck and are a literal pain to remove.

So what is the secret to pain-free removal of an external male
catheter? Any other advice on usage is welcome.

- Anonymous

A little bit of baby powder on the, eh, attachment point will make
removal easy. Don't put too much on or it won't stick enough.

John Cochrane BB

Take it off in the shower or wet it a bit.

John,

I, too, have used talcum powder with success. However,
for some reason, I stopped using it. Probably because
I just forgot to bring it with me. Since, however,
I've found the catheter comes off easily enough (usually)
after a hot day in the cockpit. Sweat some while flying
(you know, when you're down low and can't find a thermal)
and it will come off without to much wailing and gnashing
of teeth. Of course, YMMV.

Ray

At 21:42 25 April 2006, Bb wrote:
A little bit of baby powder on the, eh, attachment
point will make
removal easy. Don't put too much on or it won't stick
enough.

John Cochrane BB

Really now, just be a man...

Not all catheters are the same. Last year I ordered a bunch from Zee
Medical. After trying the first one, I returned them all. The adhesive
was WAY too aggressive! I then ordered the ones I had been using-
Standard Care from Mentor Corp. (Available from Quality Medical
Supplies (www.qualitymedicalsupplies.com). Item # 76-9400. These are
the 35mm size- other sizes are available. Price was $1.13 ea. in
quantities of 100. Over $100, they pay shipping.
The adhesive is not as tough to remove as the silicone catheters from
Zee. I thought I was going to have to regularly replace non-replaceable
equipment with those:-). All is well now.

The secret is the same as the secret for removing bandages. No, not
Acetone--not *there*!
The secret is counter-traction. Gently lift a bit of catheter from the
skin-(the last bit is not adhesive coated), then pull the catheter material
gently towards "off", while gently pulling the skin towards the body. No
need to pinch it, just a bit of thumb pressure and pull toward the body.
Stay close to the catheter with the skin thumb, and as the catheter comes
off, advance the thumb incrementally. A deep breath helps!

Hope that helps.

--
Hartley Falbaum
DG800B--"KF"

"ContestID67" wrote in message
oups.com...
Ever since my first contests and XC flights I have been wearing an
external male catheter. Putting these things on is easy. Taking them
off is another matter altogether. I know they have to be sticky or
they might fall off at an inopertune time but jeez-la-wheez they sure
can stay stuck and are a literal pain to remove.

So what is the secret to pain-free removal of an external male
catheter? Any other advice on usage is welcome.

- Anonymous

I tried several brands and settled on Holister because they're easiest
to remove.

I found the Mentor to be the worst -- way too aggressive adhesive.
Yowza! (I did appreciate their free samples though.)

~ted/2NO

http://www.vitalitymedical.com/Vital...front/EN/Produ
ct/URO6400?GCID=C13064x004

I must not be as masochistic as you guys...one try
with the sticky ones, and I did a search and found
velcro reusable straps...verrrry much better, no removal
issues.

ContestID67 wrote:
Ever since my first contests and XC flights I have been wearing an
external male catheter. Putting these things on is easy. Taking them
off is another matter altogether. I know they have to be sticky or
they might fall off at an inopertune time but jeez-la-wheez they sure
can stay stuck and are a literal pain to remove.

So what is the secret to pain-free removal of an external male
catheter? Any other advice on usage is welcome.

- Anonymous

- After a couple of seasons of using non-adhesive male catheters, I
ordered some with adhesive and when the arrived in the mail, promptly
tried on.....it took the next 40 minutes or so to remove it! Needless
to say this was a scary experience. I called my sister-in-law, who is a
nurse, who after a few minutes of laughing, told me she'd find out what
they used to remove these things at the hospital. The answer is a
product called "detachol" (www.detachol.com). Available wherever you
are sourcing the catheters. A small amount on a q-tip will make removal
painless and easy. Most flights I don't seem to need it, but when I
do, I'm sure glad I have some in the car!

Dave