Ultrasound Renal

A renal ultrasound is a safe and painless test that uses sound waves to make images of the kidneys, ureters, and bladder. The kidneys are a pair of bean-shaped organs located toward the back of the abdominal cavity, just above the waist. They remove waste products from the blood and produce urine. The ureters are thin tubes that carry the urine from the kidneys to the bladder.

What to Bring

• Your physician order (your physician may have already sent this to us)
• Personal ID
• Insurance Card

How to Prepare

• You do not have to do anything special to prepare for a renal Ultrasound.
• If you have a history of kidney problems, you should inform the technologist.
• If you wear an on-body device (insulin pump, insulin regulators, Neulasta, other chemo/insulin devices, etc), you must inform your x-ray technologist. Some of these devices cannot be in the room during the exam.
• No risks are associated with a renal ultrasound. Unlike X-rays, radiation is not involved with this test.

What to Expect

• You may be asked to remove clothes and to wear a gown during your exam.
• The room is usually dark so the images can be seen clearly on the computer screen.
• During the exam you will be asked to lie on a table.
• An Ultrasound Technologist will spread a clear, warm gel on your abdomen over the kidney area. This gel is required to help with the transmission of sound waves through a small wand (transducer). The transducer emits high-frequency sound waves and a computer measures how the sound waves bounce back from inside the body. The computer changes those sound waves into images to be analyzed.
• You may be asked to lie still in different positions and hold your breath briefly to obtain images.
• Please allow 45 minutes from registration to completion of test.

Getting the Results

• A radiologist (a doctor who is specially trained in reading and interpreting diagnostic and ultrasound images) will interpret the ultrasound results and send the information to your provider.