VCUG And Renal Ultrasounds

Uggh, to keep it short. I took my 3 yr old daughter for her 3rd round of these tests - she was initially diagnosed with reflux at 6 months - and she did not appreciate them at all. While she did relatively well during the tests, it was the aftermath that was truly horrible. She would not urinate or even want to go near the potty for days. She just kept holding it and would end up going in her pull-up at night. It soulds like your little one has the same thing, but unfortunately, I think you'll have to get these tests in order to proceed to the next step. My advice, get a good nephrologist (kidney doctor) since this is the true issue here. The continued UTIs could lead to kidney damage later in life. And I know you do not want those. There has been research and advancements have been made in the short amount of time since my daughter was diagnosed. So find a good kidney specialist and stick with them. Your pediatrician should be able to recommend one.

My daughter has had many VCUG's and Renal U/S. I'm not going to lie and tell you they were fun! They were one of the hardest days. But...it is for their own good and to figure out what is wrong. Most hospitals do have things to keep the kids calm. My daughter was young enough to still have a pacifier, and they'd keep dipping it in sugar water. They also had movies playing right above them, so bring a favorite if your daughter has one. They also had toys and other things to keep them distracted. The VCUG test isn't long at all. The Renal U/S is however. One my daughter had was 1/2 hour and the other was 1 hour. That is a long time to be held down. But kids suprise you, and my daughter ended up falling asleep during both u/s. Good luck!!

Hi A. -
My youngest DD had Kidney Reflux on both sides. We discovered it when she was four months old because she was running a terribly high fever and completely lithargic (sp). I took her in and she had a terrible UTI ... they sent her ASAP for the VCUG because they said something pretty much had to be wrong in order for her to get UTI's at that age.

Anyway, we did that and the Ultra sound when she was four months old - she was GREAT with both although those tests suck. Are you going to Children's? They are great there and fairly quick about things as well. Eve had to go back when she turned one (the reflux was gone on one side and still there on the other) and back again at age 2 (all cleared up!). She took a daily dose of Antibiotic to prevent her from getting infections while she had the reflux. She was a grade "3" on a scale of 1-5 ... and did not need surgery.

I also took my then year old (who is about to turn 4) in to be tested just in case because there is a 40% chance that a sibling would have the same problem. She did really well also. The worst part for her was "peeing on the table" because she was potty training also and did not want to have an "accident."

I would say just talk to your daughter, hold her and she will do OK ... It is scary though, no matter what - because you are her Mother.

If you want to chat I'm here.

Good luck!

Heather

A., My son does the renal ultrasounds every other year and has a CMG which is a pressure test on the years they dont do a ultrasound because he has spina bifida. By experience take stuff for her to do while she is lying down, whether it be books, toys, something to keep her laying still. I am Not sure where you are going in chicago they have a tv and they put movies in for him to watch. I am very open and honest with my son on what they are doing and how, that way he knows, they dont always understand but Knowing that they are doing it seems to help him. I hope this helps and I wish you the best of luck.

My daughter has the same issue and was diagnosed with urinary reflux at 12 weeks old. sha has been on a daily dose of antibiotics and has yet to get another infection. so it was caught early. we went back when she turned two to have the ultra sound and reflux again to see if she had grown out of them unfortunatel she hasn't so she'll have to have the tests again at 3 yrs. the ultrasound is a breeze and the vcug was harder. if the nurse is skilled which they usually are if you're at a childrens hospital it isn't too bad. you can ask that they apply a numbing agent. they do need to be restrained somewhat while the cath. is being inserted. we were able to do it ourselves rather than strapping her in but they do have the straps there too. is is not easy but needs to be done so that there isn't kidney damage. if you'd like to chat you can email me directly. best of luck.

I have to be honest, both my children had to go through this, my 3 year old and 6 year old. They both had kidney reflux. The renal ultrasound is a piece of cake, I just told my kids they were getting pictures taken of their bellies, they look on the screen and they were fine. The VCUG, not so fun! I will not lie, at 3, Payton screamed and it brought me to tears, it took 4 of us to hold her down, putting the catheter in is scary for little ones. I held her hand, made sure she could see my face the whole time and tried to comfort her. We waited on my 6 year old until she was 4 and it was rough too, she now massive damage to her left kidney. My 3 year old had damage to both kidneys. They both had surgery to correct the reflux, if we did not do the testing, it is possilbe that my 3 year olds kidneys would have shut down by now, she would get so sick, we would be in the hosptial for 3-4 days at a time. She had reflux on both sides, Taylor my older one only on one side. while it is painful to go through, it is worth it, once you know waht the problem is, you can work to fix it, but until then, your child might get sicker. Where are you getting it done? I had it done at Children's. They were AWESOME to my kids!!! If you need a urologist, try Dr. John Houston, he is so amazing and great to work with, he would call me back in the middle of the night if my kids were sick, he would talk me through anything and never made my concerns feel insignificant! If you need more info, feel free to email me!

My son has had these both at around a year old. The ultrasound is a breeze - just some warm gel and a probe rubbed on his back. It didn't even phase him at all. We just sang his favorite songs to distract him while they did the ultrasound. You might want to practice this on a dolly then your child at home so it goes easily.

The VCUG was rougher. He had both procedures the at the same visit... but they did the ultrasound before the catheter or VCUG which I think helped the ultrasound go so smoothly. He had a catheter placed, he didn't like that procedure but it was over with quickly. He then had the VCUG done, when his bladder was filled it was uncomfortable and he writhed around a lot, not releasing the fluid. They poured warm water on his privates to help stimulate him to release the fluid in his bladder but it took him quite a lot of time to actually do it. Hopefully for your daughter she is further a long with control of her bladder and it won't be an issue for her. Good luck.

M.

My 4 yr old had this done when she was 3, she did okay, she actually did not like the ultra sound more than the other test, she did cry a little bit when they were putting the cath inside her. She really was not restrained, I was up by her head holding her hands and talking with her so that she was a little bit distracted. once it was in and they let her go potty she was okay, after they put the solution in her and took the pictures they needed, she was allowed to relieve herself to get the cath out, that took her a while cause she did not understand what was happening, she was not real traumatized by it, but it was not a pleasant experience.
Good Luck.

A.,

My daughter had a UTI when she was about a year old, and had to do a VCUG. Inserting the catheter is the worst part, but if you have a skillful nurse it only takes a few seconds. The actual test takes all of a minute as I recall. Hers proved that there were no urinary tract issues, so the peace of mind was worth the temporary trauma. And I know you know this, but your daughter won't remember it. Good luck.

S.

The ultrasound is quick and easy. The VCUG is more uncomfortable, but once the catheter is in it goes pretty fast. My son is scheduled to have his 5th VCUG in a couple weeks. He had surgery for renal reflux at the beginning of August and hopefully this test will show it is corrected. It's really hard as the parent because you are going to have to help hold your child down and still, but try to keep calm because if your child starts seeing you get upset it will feed her anxiety. I hope this all goes smoothly for you. Also, I always give a dose of Childrens Tylenol after to try and help with the discomfort he seems to experience the first few time urinating following the catheter. If you decide you need a second opinion, I highly recommend Dr. John Houston. He's associated with Children's Memorial and he is an excellent doctor and surgeon.

i have a four month old who went though those test and a few more then had kidney surgey. it is every had on the kids and really hard on the parents. i went to osf in peoria they were every helpful. they had lots of papers to read though for kids all ages. one thing the said for older kids was to explain the best you can to the child what is going to happen at the appt. you should ask you doctor or a nurse if they have anything that will help or any ideas most have lots of ideas that u can use. hope this helps