Cystourethrogram: Test Overview
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Test Overview
A cystourethrogram is an X-ray test that takes pictures of your bladder and urethra while your bladder is full and while you are urinating. A thin flexible tube (urinary catheter 
) is inserted through your urethra into your bladder. A liquid material that shows up well on an X-ray picture (contrast material) is injected into your bladder through the catheter, then X-rays are taken with the contrast material in your bladder. More X-rays may be taken while urine flows out of your bladder, in which case the test is called a voiding cystourethrogram (VCUG).
If X-rays are taken while contrast material is being injected into the urethra, the test is called a retrograde cystourethrogram because the contrast material flows into the bladder opposite the usual direction of urine flow.
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| Last updated: | July 08, 2008 |
|---|---|
| Author: | Monica Rhodes |
| Reviewed By: | E. Gregory Thompson, MD - Internal Medicine, Avery L. Seifert, MD - Urology |
| Editors: | Kathleen M. Ariss, MS, Tracy Landauer |
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