Cystoscopy

[Sunshine]

I saw the urologist today and scheduled a Cystoscopy. I had one about 25 years ago and it was barbaric. But this doc said they used to used stainless steel tubes. Now they use flexible plastic tube with a mini camera in it.

Have you had one of these? If so, what was your experience?

[agate]

I had at least one cystoscopy but it was many years ago--and I'm so glad not to have had it repeated since then. It was only somewhat painful but after at least one of the urological procedures I had, I promptly got a UTI and always wondered if the procedure might have brought it on.

There was a period of several years when I was going to urologists--I think I stopped at the third one and gave up because all they were doing was prescribing Ornade, Detrol, Ditropan, and Vesicare. This was 20 years ago at least. I don't remember what kind of tubing they were using but have a vague memory of plastic. There probably was no camera. Metal would have been quite uncomfortable, seems to me.

[Cherie]

I had two about 6 years ago...one in the office and another in the hospital under general anesthesia. Neither was painful but the one in the office was uncomfortable. And it was a flexible lighted tube. The one in the hospital had a camera as well.

[Virginia]

I have had two. One many, many years ago. Unpleasant, but not really too bad. I had another one just many years ago and it was just very unpleasant.

Edited to add: If they do not give you an antibiotic, ask for one in case you get a UTI from it.

[agate]

Doctors apparently are more and more reluctant to prescribe antibiotics because of the way the antibiotics have been proving to be less effective as the bugs build up their resistance to them, but I'm hoping that they will continue to think of people with MS as more entitled to have them than most other people, because infections are particularly apt to hit us and to be particularly bad.

[Sunshine]

They give you one dose of antibiotics at the time of the procedure per the secretary.

Cherie: DId you have one under anesthesia because without it was too awful?

[tic chick]

hey all ,

i'd like to share my experience with cystoscopy.

in preparation for pelvic organ prolapse surgery last year in january, i had several tests done to check the functioning of my bladder and urethra. these were called "urodynamics". i had a cystoscopy (with a camera) and a test that filled my bladder with water to measure it's capacity and another test i can't remember. before the cystoscopy, my pelvic reconstruction doctor put some numbing agent in my urethra and the entrance to my bladder. he said that passage from the urethra to the bladder would likely be the source of most of the discomfort of the cystoscopy.

the doctor's 2 women nurses were there during the procedure and they talked with me and we joked some. it all put me at ease. the cystoscopy was uncomfortable for about 3 minutes, then it eased. i think you have to know your pain tolerance and also tell the doctor when something is just too much. if i had anything more than that discomfort, i wouldn't have hesitated to ask the doctor to stop and reschedule under local anesthesia or possibly some kind of sedative that i could have taken by mouth before the procedure.

of course i worried about the discomfort that i might have before these procedures, but all in all it wasn't as bad as being in labor with my first baby.

i hope everything goes well for you, sunshine!

thank you for reading,
jeannie (tic chick)

[Sunshine]

Thank you ticchick for your reply— it does putmy mind at ease. I also am having that urodynamic test. I assume that one is easy? Tell me about that:

For the Cystoscopy Perhaps I will go ahead and take the Ativan so I dont spasm. That will require I find a driver. If I cannot rope a friend into doing that, I will skip the Ativan and drive self.

[tic chick]

hey sunshine !

all of my urodynamics tests were done in one room where i sat in a chair that had a cutout front so the doctor and nurses could do the tests. there was a bathroom and changing area in the room.

the test where they filled my bladder with water was no problem and no discomfort. they inserted a catheter into the bladder and slowly started filling my bladder with water. they asked me to tell them when i had the first sensation that i might have to urinate. they kept filling the bladder and asked me to tell them when i definitely felt the urge to urinate right away. they also asked me to stand and cough several times to see if that brought on leakage. then they asked me to urinate into a container that had milliliter markings on the side. they were testing to see how much fluid my bladder would hold, whether i leaked urine and at what point and how much fluid i was able to urinate compared to how much they put in me.

i think the test i didn't remember was just urinating into a container. the doctor asked me if i could stop the flow of urine. they were measuring the strength of my urinary sphincter and pelvic floor muscles. all of these tubes and catheters have sensors on them and numbers are displayed on a computer screen that a nurse views. the doctor interprets these numbers to see exactly what is causing the problems you are having. i wasn't having any urinary problems when i went in for testing, i was having severe constipation. the doctor wanted to see if i had any bladder or urethral problems before he did surgery because his motto was "one and done", meaning that since i was already going to need surgery , he wanted to make sure i had no other problems that needed fixing.

i'm glad you're feeling more at ease .

jeannie (tic chick)

[Sunshine]

So, your urodynamic testing was done the same time as the Cystoscopy, with the tube still in you so they could fill it with water?

I am also having, in a separate day and in the radiology dept, a test where they use a CT scan and inject dye into your veins so they can visualize what’s going on in there. DId you have that test too?

[Cherie]

They give you one dose of antibiotics at the time of the procedure per the secretary.

Cherie: DId you have one under anesthesia because without it was too awful?

No, she thought she saw something suspicious in the office and thought they would have to biopsy. Thankfully that was not the case.

[tic chick]

hello sunshine !

i believe i had all the urodynamic tests done in one day. i don't think they left the tube with the camera in place and used that same tube to fill my bladder with the sterile water. the filling of my bladder was done separately, but there was no discomfort involved with reinserting another tube to fill my bladder. i didn't need further testing, so i didn't have the dye and ct scan test.

i eventually had my uterus and fallopian tubes removed. i kept my ovaries. my bladder and urethra were both put in mesh slings and my vagina was sewn to some ligaments. a colorectal surgeon cut out and repositioned the part of my bowel that was twisted up in my pelvis and was causing the constipation. the surgery was done laparoscopically through my abdomen and part was done by a robot.

i kept some of my materials given to me by the pelvic reconstruction surgeon. i will post them below. you might have to click on them to read and make larger. one is a cover page that talks about urodynamic testing. the other page lists all the tests that they can do to find problems.

i hope they are helpful ,
jeannie (tic chick)

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[Virginia]

tic chick, when they put your bladder and urethra in a mesh sling did they do that laparoscopically? I just assumed this was done under anesthesia. This is really good information. I hope you don't mind some of us asking some questions. I think something is going to be done to me and I would like to know all that I can before it happens.

[tic chick]

hey virginia !

i absolutely will answer any questions if i have that knowledge or i had that procedure. if i can't i would be happy to google and find an answer.

yes, when i had my bladder and urethra put in a sling, it was done laparoscopically. my doctor gave me a sheet on the type of mesh he was using.

a little background info: i knew i had some bulging of my rectum into the vagina (rectocele) after the birth of my last child in 1985. my gynecologist told me. i was 30 y/o then. i never had anything more than some minor constipation at that time. fast forward to age 60 and i went to the hospital for severe nausea and a distended abdomen (this happened right after my mom died and i just wasn't paying attention that i hadn't gone to the bathroom). a week on miralax and i was okay. but i kept getting constipated. my pcp and gynecologist suggested general surgeons. none did rectocele repair. i was going through the list of specialists on my hospital website and i found several doctors that were called "pelvic reconstruction surgeons". i clicked on one and i saw "rectocele repair". i called that doctor. and made an appointment.

i went to that doctor. he did a thorough exam and talked to me in his office. he said i had a grade 4 pelvic organ prolapse, meaning my organs were slipping down on top of my vagina and partly into it. grade 5 is the most severe state of pelvic organ prolapse. he also told me i would need my uterus, fallopian tubes and ovaries removed. i walked out of the office in shock. i thought i was going to have a simple rectocele repair and i find out i have pelvic organ prolapse (POP). the doctor did the urodynamics tests because i said i did have frequent urination and sometimes had to rush to the bathroom. i told him i probably drank over 80 ounces of water or white tea daily. he wanted to check out my bladder and urethral function so if anything was wrong, he could fix it during the POP surgery. "one and done"

the POP surgery was done by the pelvic reconstruction doctor. i agreed with the plan except that i wanted to keep my ovaries because i read that they still secreted some hormone even after menopause. my bowel surgery was done by the colorectal surgeon with the da vinci robot. the colorectal surgeon came in and did his part and then the pelvic reconstruction doctor did his part. it was one surgery that lasted 5 hours. i went home the next day because i was able to urinate. the recovery period was 3 months. no lifting. pain meds when needed. i think the bladder and urethral sling were put in because the doctor did see that when i coughed and my bladder was full, i had a tiny amount of leakage. my urethral sling was put in because the doctor said i had a long urethra and he wanted it supported because of my age (63 at time of surgery). he said these problems just get worse with age.

the pelvic organ prolapse was due to several factors. i had 3 big children, two weighed 9 pounds and one weighed 8 pounds. using forceps delivery damages vaginal tissues. i had forceps used on all 3 births. my mom had POP surgery for the same reasons, all of us were big babies. so having POP tends to run in families. i am also caucasian and caucasian women tend to have POP more often than any other race.

there are more complications when women with POP have the mesh put in transvaginally than when they have it done through their abdomen, laparoscopically. that is why my surgeon did it laparoscopically. here is an excellent article on mesh use during POP and during stress incontinence surgery:

Only registered and activated users can see links., Click Here To Register...

i am going to repost the urodynamics information so it can be seen better. i hope it works .
well, i tried posting the info through different ways, but i keep getting the same size. i think if you change the setting on how large your type is, the pics will also appear larger. i will try and think of some other ways to repost larger.

thank you for reading,
jeannie (tic chick)

[Sunshine]

Thank you very much for this useful info, tic chick. I was able to click on the thumbnail and it enlarged it enough