CT Urogram - Benefits and Risks
- CT scanning is painless, noninvasive and accurate.
- A major advantage of CT is its ability to image bone, soft tissues and blood vessels all at the same time.
- Unlike conventional x-rays, CT scanning provides very detailed images of many types of tissue as well as the lungs, bones, and blood vessels.
- CT examinations are fast and simple; in emergency cases, they can reveal internal injuries and bleeding quickly enough to help save lives.
- CT has been shown to be a cost-effective imaging tool for a wide range of clinical problems.
- CT is less sensitive to patient movement than MRI.
- CT can be performed if you have an implanted medical device such as a pacemaker, unlike MRI.
- CT imaging provides real-time imaging, making it a good tool for guiding minimally invasive procedures such as needle biopsies and needle aspirations of many areas of the body, particularly the lungs, abdomen, pelvis and bones.
- A diagnosis determined by CT scanning may eliminate the need for exploratory surgery and surgical biopsy.
- Although CT images are acquired with radiation, no radiation remains in a patient's body after a CT examination.
- X-rays used in standard CT exams have no immediate side effects.
- CT is performed with X rays (radiation). As exposure to radiation increases, there is an increased risk of developing cancer. The exact risk of developing cancer from a single CT is not known, though from other data obtained from much higher radiation exposure (survivors of the nuclear explosion in Hiroshima in World War II), the
expected risk from a single CT is expected to be minimal. While radiation exposure from a single CT is very small, we always recommend limiting exposure to radiation whenever possible and perform our exams with the least amount of radiation that we can. When it is felt that the information that may be obtained from CT is important to help treat a patient’s illness, the benefit of an accurate diagnosis is felt to outweigh the very small risk. If you have a question if there is alternative ways of diagnosing a problem that do not involve radiation, for instance if MRI or ultrasound could be alternatively used, please ask your doctor or talk to one of our radiologists.
- Women should always inform their radiologist or technologist if there is any possibility that they are pregnant. In general, CT imaging is not recommended for pregnant women. However, a CT may be medically necessary in a pregnant patient, when the risk to the patient and her baby is greater from the patient’s illness than the potential risk of the radiation from the exam.
- The risk of serious allergic reaction to contrast materials that contain iodine is rare, however, our radiology departments are well equipped to deal with such adverse reactions. You should inform your radiologist of all medications you are taking and of any allergies. It is especially important to make sure we are aware if you have had a prior bad reaction to intravenous contrast.
Watch the CT - What to Expect Video.