Urography of the kidneys using contrast medium

Urography of the kidneys with the use of contrast agent refers to the hardware types of examination of the excretory system. Appointed in the presence of suspicions of impaired kidney function and, in particular, - with the development of symptoms characteristic of renal colic. Let's consider this type of research in more detail and we will dwell in detail on how to prepare for the procedure of renal urography and how the manipulation itself is carried out.

What is this kind of research?

To begin with, it must be said that urography of the kidneys with the use of a contrast medium is essentially the same as a conventional x-ray study, except for the fact that a special substance is introduced into the patient's body before it is administered. It is easily visualized with the help of X-rays, and thus allows you to clearly review all structures, assess the condition of the renal system. The volume of the contrast medium administered is always calculated individually, and directly depends on the age of the patient, the biochemical characteristics of the drug used.

How correctly to prepare for the procedure of kidney urography?

First of all, it should be noted that there is no specific algorithm, the observance of which is necessary for carrying out this kind of research. As a rule, doctors on the eve of the implementation of urography give the following recommendations to their patients:

1. For 3 days before the study, it is necessary to completely eliminate from the daily diet gas-producing products (bread, legumes, cabbage).
2. Approximately 8 hours before the start of the procedure, you must stop eating. However, doctors recommend limiting the use of fluid.
3. An obligatory condition for preparation for renal urography with contrast is the test for tolerability of the substance administered during the study. For this, on the eve of the patient, iodine is injected intravenously (sergozin, urografine, urotra), which will be used for urography. Enter them very slowly, in a volume of not more than 2 ml. In the absence of allergic reactions, the drug can be used for research.

How is kidney urography performed?

Before the procedure, the patient must remove all jewelry and metal objects that can only worsen the objectivity of the data during radiography.

As already mentioned above, the volume of contrast input is calculated individually, but most often it does not exceed 20 ml. Introduce the drug in the peripheral vein, located in the area of ​​the elbow fold. It should be noted that the substance is injected very slowly - usually it takes about 2 minutes. At this time, close attention is paid to the patient's well-being. If suddenly there is an allergic reaction (there is a nausea, vomiting, a feeling of heat, dizziness) - the procedure is stopped. Most often this happens when an urgent urography is performed, when there is simply no time to carry out a sample for tolerance to contrast.

It is worth noting that the time through which, after the introduction of contrast, begin to make a urogram (pictures) depends primarily on the age of the patient, the type of disease. So, with good kidney function in young people, the first urogram is produced in about 3-5 minutes, in the elderly - in 13-15 minutes. However, it should be noted that the holding of pictures at regular intervals in all patients, as in the stencil, is unacceptable and here it is necessary to take into account a lot of nuances.

Quite often, patients who are assigned urography of the kidneys are interested in the question: is this kind of procedure harmful to health. It should be noted that with properly selected contrast medium and observance of all the features of manipulation, it practically does not affect the health.