How do ultrasound of the abdomen: on an empty stomach or not? This question is asked by people whom the doctor advised to undergo this procedure. This is the most common way to study the state of health, human organs.
What organs does an abdominal ultrasound study
Ultrasound investigation - safe diagnosis. Ultrasound monitoring of organs is carried out even for young children and pregnant women.
A detailed study of parenchymal organs, as well as organs filled with fluid, will help ultrasound of the abdominal cavity. On an empty stomach or not, is the procedure performed? About all the subtleties and details will tell the attending physician. The specialist analyzes the condition of the following organs:
- the uterus;
- gall bladder;
- appendages;
- liver;
- pancreas;
- the spleen.
There are kidneys in the retroperitoneal space, they are also examined using this apparatus, and there is also the opportunity to study the stomach and intestines. But, given that the latter contains a certain air content, it will be difficult to analyze them, and the results may be distorted. To obtain reliable data, colonoscopy is used.
When do ultrasounds
The procedure is recommended for routine examination or for suspected development of the disease. Modern devices allow you to accurately determine abnormalities in the abdomen. Low cost and high information content are considered the main advantages of the method. Doing an abdominal ultrasound on an empty stomach or not depends on the organ that will be examined.
Diagnosis is carried out by a doctor or on their own initiative with the following symptoms:
- fear of organ changes found by palpation;
- bitterness in the oral cavity;
- persistent or episodic heaviness in the stomach;
- nausea, vomiting;
- increase in body temperature to insignificant indicators (37.2 or 37.5);
- colic in the abdomen, pain under the chest, pain in the hypochondrium or lower back;
- increased bloating;
- frequent urination, burning, pain during the process;
- preparation before surgery;
- suspected infection, foci of inflammation or oncology.
Based on the results of an ultrasound, the doctor makes a complete picture of the pathology and determines how badly the organ is damaged.
Examination preparation
To achieve objective results, you need to properly prepare for the procedure. The doctor will tell you how to do it better, there is a kind of reminder for preparing for ultrasound of the abdominal cavity. It indicates some of the features of preparation for diagnosis:
- After an x-ray, an ultrasound scan is carried out only after three days.
- For several days you can’t drink alcohol, and for a couple of hours before the procedure itself, do not smoke.
- Water before ultrasound of the abdominal cavity is not drunk for 4-5 hours. An exception is a kidney examination.
- To keep the intestines clean, an enema is advisable before diagnosis. It is possible without it, then the doctor will prescribe preparations for cleaning the intestines, which have a laxative effect. Or about two days take absorbent medications.
- Examination is best done in the morning on an empty stomach.
- A few hours before the procedure, chewing gum and candies should not be chewed.
- When used on the eve of pain medication, the patient should inform the doctor about this.
Before you prepare for an abdominal ultrasound examination, find out what you can eat from food to remove foods that can increase flatulence from the diet.
The doctor will advise you to exclude from the menu:
- carbonated drinks;
- legumes;
- sausages;
- milk;
- nuts
- fruits and vegetables;
- yeast products;
- fat meat;
- coffee and strong tea;
- cottage cheese, fermented baked milk and kefir;
- confectionery;
- fruit juices;
- oily fish;
- mushrooms;
- black bread.
Do not eat fried, salty and spicy. The restriction of such products will reduce gas formation in the intestine and help the doctor more accurately examine the abdominal cavity.
Recommended Diet
To identify functional or pathological processes in organs, it is important to adhere to a diet. In the menu, it is best to include:
- boiled, steamed or baked meat of chicken, beef or fish;
- one hard boiled egg;
- barley, buckwheat, oatmeal cooked in water;
- hard cheeses;
- low-fat light soups or broths.
It is advisable to eat small meals every 3 hours. For drinking, use weak tea or plain still water. For 3-5 hours before the procedure, refrain from eating. If the examination starts only in the afternoon, then you can eat a light breakfast.
Bladder examination
An examination of the bladder reveals diseases of the organ and the degree of development of pathology. The patient must carefully prepare and fulfill all the requirements of the doctor. By the beginning of the procedure, the urine should be full, this will help determine it:
- form;
- circuit;
- wall thickness.
Before you do an abdominal ultrasound, is it okay to drink? In this case, even necessary. To fill the body about a couple of hours before the examination, the patient drinks at least 1.5 liters of fluid. You can tea, compote, juice, water, but you can not empty the bladder. It is advisable that during the procedure the patient really wanted to use the toilet.
When examining the adrenal glands or kidneys, the intestines need to be empty. Diagnosis is performed on an empty stomach. The absence of problems with the stool will help to avoid additional stimulation, emptying in the morning will be quite enough. With constipation, the doctor will prescribe a laxative.
Pancreas diagnosis
During the study of the body, the doctor evaluates its contours and sizes. Malignant and benign formations are visible. Before preparing for the procedure, you should find out from a specialist whether an abdominal ultrasound is performed on an empty stomach or not. Namely the pancreas. On the day of the procedure on an empty stomach, it is advisable to take a laxative and do not eat or drink anything. Usually, in preparation, the doctor advises you to abandon protein-rich foods. You can drink water, but you can’t drink alcohol and harmful drinks.
Liver examination
Timely examination of the organ allows you to detect diseases in the early stages of their development. The final result depends on the degree of preparation of the patient for the procedure.
Preparation for liver ultrasound is the same as with the usual diagnosis of other organs located in the abdomen.
Preparation for the study of female genital organs
When examining the uterus and appendages, abnormalities can be noticed. In order for the results to be objective, everything should be done correctly for ultrasound of the abdominal organs. Fasting or not coming to the procedure does not matter. But it is important that the bladder is full, so that organs will be better visible. An hour before the procedure, you need to drink a liter of liquid.
Ultrasound examination is the most informative way to diagnose pathologies of various kinds. But in order for the results to be more accurate, it is in the patient’s interests to follow the doctor’s recommendations and carry out all the preparations for ultrasound.