# defecography query



## Mary2001 (Aug 25, 2006)

I wonder if anyone has had a defecography could you tell me if its an X ray with dye injected? If so where is the dye injected, and is it sore getting the injection. Thanks for any info about it. Mary


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## Lauri (Nov 23, 2004)

Hi. I had a defogram about a year ago. There is no injection of anything. You just can't eat after midnight. When you get there they have you drink 2 small bottles of a drink with barium in it. It wasn't that bad and I HATE any kind of milkshake thing. Tips: Bring hard candy with you. I had lifesavers. I would take a few big gulps of the drink and then suck on a lifesaver for a minute. Take lifesaver out, take a few gulps and pop the lifesaver back in. Worked great. Also you DON'T have to drink every drop. I drank 3/4 of the 1st one and then 3/4 of the 2nd. The nurse said "very good." You drink it over about an hour or so. Then they take you in a room. You go into the bath and put some of the barium paste into your vagina. This way they can see how all your muscles work at once when you push to evacuate it. They have a table that tips straight up and down and it has a toilet attached to it. You sit on the toilet which is behind an xray screen. The dr. will tell you at times to push, squeeze, push hard, etc. He can then see how your internal muscles work. They can then tell you what problems you may have. I have a rectocele (which I already knew). Said I had weak muscles.Now I know this probably sounds gross and overwhelming, but honestly? It sounds WAY worse than it is. I'd rather do this again than another colonoscopy. 1. there is really no prep other than stop eating after midnight (make sure you get an appt. 1st thing in a.m.) 2. the drink isn't that bad. 3. when you go in and have to "poop" the stuff out, it is just a paste. There is NO odor to it so you don't have to worry about embaressment. The ONLY thing I regret is...I go to a teaching hospital. So they asked if I minded if a few students observed. I said "sure." I thought they would be on the other side of the screen w/the radiologist. No...they stood right in front of me and watched. That was a little tough having people watch. If I did it again I'd say NO THANKS. They give you a face cloth and towels to clean up w/afterwards cuz the paste in your vagina is messy to clean. Then just drink LOTS of water to flush any remaining barium out. I had no problem w/it whatsoever. Let me know how you make out. When are you doing it?


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## EarnestAccord (Dec 11, 2001)

So do you have to actually have a BM? I'm not sure I could relax enough or for that matter have one on demand.


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