Silver-coated urinary catheters may prevent urinary tract infections (UTI) better than uncoated catheters. In addition, although they are more expensive, their use is likely to mean lower costs overall, according to a new study.

"The potential cost savings from this sort of research are tremendous because an episode of UTI increases length of stay so much," says David Nash, MD, MBA, to WebMD. "What's particularly good in this paper is the way they selected patients at highest risk as candidates for silver alloy catheters." Dr. Nash is associate dean of Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia and director of its office of health policy.

Archives of Internal Medicine Sept. 25, 2000.