BACKGROUND: Foley catheters are commonly used to control posterior epistaxis in most ENT departments. There are very few studies of the ideal substance for inflating Foley catheters for posterior epistaxis. This in vitro study compared the effects of water, saline and air in delivering effective tamponade. METHODS: Three groups of five Foley catheters each were filled with 10 ml of water, saline or air. Forty-eight hours later, the residual volume was aspirated and measured. RESULTS: At 48 hours, the following residual volumes were aspirated: air, 0 ml; saline, 8.5 ml; and water, 8.7 ml. CONCLUSION: This study shows that air is not suitable for inflating Foley catheters, as they had spontaneously deflated when assessed 48 hours after inflation. We hypothesise that water is a better Foley catheter inflation fluid than saline. We recommend a larger, in vivo study to ascertain the benefits of these Foley catheter inflation substances in curtailing epistaxis in the clinical setting.
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