Fletcher Allen, a Vermont university hospital and medical center, serves all of
Vermont and the northern New York region. Located in Burlington, Fletcher Allen is a regional, academic healthcare center and teaching hospital in alliance with the University of Vermont.
VCUG for Girls
You will be having a VCUG or Voiding Cystourethrogram. A VCUG checks your bladder and urinary system (see picture). Your urinary system is your kidneys, ureter, bladder, and urethra. You need all these things to work right in order to urinate, or pee.
The first thing you will do when the technologist calls you is go to the bathroom to urinate or pee. Then you will change into a gown, making sure to take all your clothes off, even your panties. The room you will be in will have a metal table with a big machine over it that takes the pictures.
This big machine is just like a big camera. It will take pictures of your bladder and send them to a TV screen where you will see your bladder. There will also be a tall pole near the table with a bottle hanging on it. This bottle will be full of clear fluid called contrast. The bottle will be connected to a rubber tube called a catheter.
Once you have your gown on, the technologist will help you get on the table and lie down on your back. Next you will pull your feet up close to your body with your knees out to the side in frog position (see picture). Now the technologist will put gloves on and wash the area between your legs with pink soap. Once they are done it is very important that you don't touch that area and keep your arms above your head.
Next, the technologist will gently slide the rubber tube catheter into your urethra to your bladder, and tape it in place to your leg. This might make you feel like you need to go to the bathroom. When you can't hold it anymore, tell the technologist. Then, believe it or not, they will tell you to go to the bathroom right on the table! Meanwhile, they will take pictures of your bladder while it is emptying.
After that, the technologist will remove the catheter, or tube, that was in your bladder. Then you can change and go home. The first few times that you go to the bathroom after that might feel a little weird. Your urine might even be a little pink, but that is normal. Just remember to drink a lot of juice or water afterwards. If you have any questions, please call Fletcher Allen Radiology at (802) 847-3593.
