Is it possible to eat before an ultrasound scan of the abdomen? Ultrasound of the abdominal cavity: what you can and cannot eat before the examination. Features of drinking water

Ultrasound examination is a modern non-invasive way to assess the condition of internal organs.

With its help, you can determine their size, structure, shape, and the presence of tumors. In some cases, ultrasound does not require specific preparation.

But before examining the gastrointestinal tract, in order to obtain a reliable result, the patient is required to follow certain rules. Let's figure out what you shouldn't eat before an abdominal ultrasound.

By scanning the abdominal cavity with ultrasound, you can examine the condition of parenchymal (solid tissue) and hollow organs filled with fluid, including:

• liver;
• aorta (abdominal);
• gallbladder;
• pancreas;
• spleen;
• bile ducts;
• stomach;
• upper intestine (duodenum).

In addition, the condition of the kidneys located in the retroperitoneal space is usually assessed.

During the procedure, the position, structure and size of organs are revealed. Their echogenicity is determined - the ability to reflect ultrasonic waves, depending on the density of the tissue. Foreign inclusions, the structure of bile and ducts, as well as all large vessels are visualized.

The duodenum and stomach are hollow organs. Their condition is assessed using fibrogastroduodenoscopy. Ultrasound is used as an auxiliary technique. It allows you to see thickening of the walls of the stomach and intestines, which may indicate an inflammatory process.

Indications for abdominal ultrasound:

• flatulence;
• nausea;
• belching;
• changes in the size and shape of organs, which the doctor discovered during palpation;
• suspicion of the presence of neoplasms;
• examination after injuries;
• preparation for abdominal surgery;
• performing a biopsy.

Ultrasound examination is harmless to the body. If indicated, it can be performed multiple times.

Factors leading to distortion of the ultrasound picture

To obtain a reliable result when examining the abdominal organs, it is important to exclude all factors that may lead to a distortion of the diagnostic picture. The main ones:

• spasm (compression) of intestinal smooth muscles due to previous endoscopic examination;
• the presence of a large amount of gases in the intestinal loops;
• filling the stomach and intestines with food masses;
• a significant layer of subcutaneous fat caused by excess weight (it reduces the depth of ultrasound penetration);
• remnants of a contrast agent in the gastrointestinal tract after an X-ray examination with its use;
• extensive wound surface in the scanning area;
• motor activity at the time of diagnosis.

An abdominal ultrasound is performed in a horizontal position on the back. The specialist may ask you to lie on your right/left side and take a deep breath.

If there is an abnormal location of organs, for example, with a high localization of the spleen, it is better for the patient to be in an upright position.

What does preparation for an abdominal ultrasound include?

The essence of preparing for an ultrasound scan of the abdomen is to provide conditions so that the diagnostician can fully visualize the internal organs and assess their condition.

Scanning is carried out in the morning on an empty stomach or after 15:00. In the second case, the last meal should be taken early in the morning. It is important that breakfast is easily digestible.

Preparation rules:

1. You should not eat or drink for 8-12 hours before the test. An exception is made for ultrasound of the kidneys and genitourinary system. 1 hour before the procedure, you should drink 0.5-1 liters of mineral water (still) and do not empty the bladder. Tea and coffee are contraindicated.
2. 3 days before the session you need to go on a special diet. Its goal is to minimize the amount of gas in the intestines, as well as to prevent spasm of smooth muscles and irritation of the mucous membrane.
3. Smoking is prohibited for 2 hours before the session, as nicotine leads to spasms of the gallbladder and stomach, and the process itself leads to swallowing air. In addition, it is not recommended to chew gum or eat candy.
4. Ultrasound scanning of the abdominal cavity is not performed immediately after radiography using a contrast agent (gastrography, irrigoscopy), as well as after colonoscopy and fibrogastroduodenoscopy. The minimum interval between procedures is 2 days.
5. If you are prone to constipation, you should take care of cleansing your intestines. To do this, you should take a laxative or do an enema 12-14 hours before the ultrasound.

Violation of any of the rules should be reported to the specialist conducting the diagnostics. Otherwise, he may misinterpret the ultrasound picture, for example, mistaking gas in the intestines for a stone in the gall bladder. In addition, it is important to inform him about the medications he is taking, especially those with antispasmodic properties (drotaverine, papaverine, dibazole and others). If possible, their use should be avoided.

Long-term fasting is contraindicated for diabetics. On the morning before the ultrasound, they are allowed to eat a slice of dried white bread and drink a cup of warm tea.

If ultrasound is performed in childhood, then the requirements for the number of hours of fasting are different. Babies under one year old should not eat for 3 hours, from 1 to 3 years old - 4 hours, from 3 to 14 years old - 6-8 hours. You can't drink for 1 hour.

And in this topic is a review of methods for treating kidney colds. How to recognize the disease and how to prevent it?

What should you not eat before an abdominal ultrasound? For 3 days before the ultrasound, the following should be excluded from the diet:

1. Whole milk and fermented milk products. Excess milk sugar (lactose) in the intestines causes fermentation. Moreover, with age, the amount of the enzyme that breaks it down decreases.
2. Fruits and berries with a sweet taste - apples, pears, figs, cherries, peaches, bananas. They contain fructose and fiber, which promote flatulence.
3. Starchy fruits (potatoes, corn), onions, asparagus and any variety of cabbage. They contain a lot of polysaccharides.
4. Juices from the mentioned vegetables and fruits.
5. Black rye bread, pastries, factory-made sweets. These products contain carbohydrates, as well as various synthetic additives that provoke fermentation and can irritate the walls of the gastrointestinal tract.
6. Legumes – soybeans, peas, lentils, beans. They are saturated with plant protein and polysaccharides, which are difficult to digest by the body. When they are digested, a lot of gases are released.
7. Fatty meats and fish. The accumulation of fats in the intestines provokes prolonged absorption of food and its rotting.
8. Carbonated drinks. The carbon dioxide they contain accumulates in the gastrointestinal tract. In addition, such drinks always contain a lot of harmful chemical additives (stabilizers, dyes, preservatives) that irritate the mucous membrane.
9. Cinnamon, cumin, pepper and some other spices, as well as coffee and alcohol. They negatively affect the condition of the inner layer of the gastrointestinal tract.

For 3 days before examining the abdominal cavity, the diet should consist of:

• porridge without sugar, cooked in water - oatmeal, buckwheat, rice;
• boiled beef, chicken, quail meat;
• steamed or baked lean fish;
• hard cheese with a low percentage of fat;
• soft-boiled eggs - no more than 1 per day;
• water, weak tea without sugar - up to 1.5 liters per day.

You need to eat small meals every 3-4 hours. It is important to chew food thoroughly. You should drink not during meals, but after 30-40 minutes.

Meals should take place in a calm atmosphere, without rushing or talking. This will help prevent air from being swallowed.

What drugs help the research?

To reduce the likelihood of distortion of the ultrasound picture when examining the abdominal organs, the following medications can be used in consultation with the doctor:

1. Carminatives based on simethicone to reduce gas formation - “Espumizan”, “Infacol”, “Disflatil”. The dosage should be specified in the instructions. For example, Espumisan is taken 3 capsules 3-4 times a day for 3 days. Simethicone acts only in the intestines and has no systemic effect.
2. Sorbents for removing toxins and fermentation products - “White Coal”, “Smecta”, “Enterosgel”. One of the medications should be taken the evening before and 3 hours before the morning of the test.
3. Enzymes that facilitate the absorption of food - “Mezim”, “Festal”, “Creon”. They should be drunk during meals 3 times a day for 2 days. For pancreatitis, use is not recommended.
4. Laxatives based on herbal raw materials - “Senade”, “Fortrans”. If you are prone to constipation, the drug should be taken the evening before the test. Medicines containing lactulose should not be taken as they increase gas formation.

When preparing for an ultrasound of a child, you can use children's analogues of the listed drugs in age-appropriate dosages. Medication support must be agreed upon with the pediatrician.

Ultrasound of the abdominal cavity allows you to quickly assess the condition of the gastrointestinal tract and kidneys without causing discomfort to the patient. It is extremely important to follow the rules of preparation for scanning, especially those related to nutrition. Otherwise, an erroneous result may be obtained, which will lead to the prescription of inappropriate treatment.

Video on the topic

Preparing for an abdominal ultrasound: what can you eat and drink? Ultrasound examination is a safe and accessible diagnostic method. An examination of the abdominal organs is not complete without it. Why an abdominal ultrasound is performed is easy to understand.

It helps to assess the size, condition and some functions of internal organs in the presence of various symptoms of diseases:

• abdominal pain;
• nausea, vomiting, or bitter taste in the mouth;
• periodic hiccups, heartburn;
• heaviness and pain in the hypochondrium;
• abdominal enlargement;
• weight loss not related to diet;
• high blood pressure;
• jaundice;
• control of the treatment;
• scheduled examination.

To ensure that the examination time is not wasted, you need to know how to prepare for an ultrasound of the abdominal organs.

Factors distorting the result

To understand what can harm the diagnosis, you should understand how an abdominal ultrasound is performed. Ultrasound waves are emitted by a special sensor placed on the abdomen.
It also captures their behavior in the tissues of the body.

It depends on the content of water, gases, and dense calcareous structures.
Different tissues differ in their ability to transmit, reflect, and scatter the signal.

Due to this, an ultrasound image is formed.
The presence of gas cannot reflect or dissipate sound. Calcifications, calcifications, reflect waves as much as possible and look very clear.

The organs of the abdominal cavity include:

• liver ();
• gallbladder;
• pancreas;
• spleen;
• stomach;
• intestines;
• abdominal aorta;
• lymph nodes.

The kidneys are located at the level of the abdomen, but do not belong to its organs.
They lie retroperitoneally.

Their examination using sonography requires different preparation than ultrasound of the abdominal cavity. The bladder, uterus and appendages in women belong to the pelvic organs and are examined separately.

The structure of parenchymatous organs is best reflected - those that do not have a cavity inside. The stomach and intestines are hollow inside, so this is less informative for them.

Ultrasound is a serious procedure and, to some extent, even pleasant. But each organ requires its own preparation. As a rule, these are all kinds of diets that are prescribed by the attending physicians a few days before the ultrasound. To know what to prepare for, it is worth considering what diets are needed for ultrasound of the abdominal organs, liver, kidneys and pelvis.

Diet before ultrasound of the abdominal organs

In this case, the diet is needed in order to reduce the amount of gas in the intestines. It is carried out three days before the procedure.

Nutritionists allow eating grain porridge. For example, buckwheat, oatmeal and flaxseed. You can also eat beef and poultry.

If you want to eat fish, then you can eat that too. Only it must be steamed, baked or boiled.

You are allowed to eat one egg per day. Just remember that it should be soft-boiled, not hard-boiled.

Nutritionists and professional doctors allow you to eat cheese. But there shouldn't be any fat in it.

It is worth remembering that meals should be taken four to five times a day. The interval between each should be three to four hours.

The last time you eat is in the evening as a light dinner.

As a rule, an ultrasound of the abdominal cavity is prescribed in the morning. There should be no breakfast. You can't drink water either. The procedure must be done on an empty stomach.

It is possible to carry out the procedure even after fifteen o’clock in the afternoon. In this case, you are allowed to have breakfast at any time from eight to eleven o'clock. Only then food and water are prohibited.

Nutritionists have compiled a list of foods that are strictly prohibited from being consumed for three days before an abdominal ultrasound. This includes raw fruits and vegetables, baked goods, beans, all dairy products, including milk itself, sweets and alcohol. There should be no fatty fish or fatty meat these days. Juices, carbonated drinks, and strong coffee are also prohibited.

Under no circumstances should you chew gum or suck hard candies before this procedure.

It is also better to abstain from smoking. The doctor must make the correct diagnosis, but due to the resulting stomach spasm, this is impossible.

For children, this diet is somewhat different.

For example, children under one year old should not be fed for two to four hours and not given anything to drink one hour before the scheduled procedure. Children from one to three years old are not recommended to eat food within four hours. One hour before the scheduled procedure you should not drink.

Children over three years old should not eat for six to eight hours before the procedure. One hour before the scheduled procedure you should not drink.

If you have previous ultrasound results, it is advisable to bring them so that the doctor can diagnose the changes.

Diet before liver ultrasound

Now it’s worth figuring out which foods can be consumed during this period and which cannot.

So, the so-called “allowed” products include meat. Only it must be non-greasy. It should be consumed boiled, stewed or baked. You can also eat diet sausages and skinless poultry.

Nutritionists are pleased with fish lovers, as they can eat lean fish boiled, stewed or baked.

Eggs can only be consumed in prepared dishes. A protein omelet is a good option for breakfast.

Since the human body cannot do without milk and dairy products, nutritionists allow them to be consumed. Just remember that the milk should be low-fat. Fermented milk products include kefir, sour cream, yogurt, cottage cheese and cheese.

Everyone knows that the body needs fats, which can be found in butter and vegetable oil.

You can also eat soups made from vegetables, cereals, milk and fruits. Nutritionists do not prohibit the consumption of vegetarian borscht and cabbage soup.

You can eat sweeter berries and fruits.

Almost anything is possible in terms of drinks. By the way, baked goods should also be included in the diet.

Now you need to pay attention to what you can't do.

Firstly, it’s all fatty foods: meat, sausages, entrails, canned food, caviar and dairy products.

Secondly, during this period it is better to refrain from eating hard-boiled and fried eggs.

No meat, fish or mushroom broths. Okroshka and green cabbage soup are also prohibited!

Baking from butter and puff pastry is not recommended by nutritionists.

It is better not to eat fruits and berries that taste sour. Also, sweets such as confectionery, ice cream and chocolate are prohibited.

Among the drinks, black coffee, cocoa, drinks with gas and alcohol are strictly prohibited.

My daily diet should include proteins in the amount of 110-110 grams, fats in the amount of 80-100 grams and carbohydrates in the amount of 400-450 grams.

In this case, things are easy and simple. No special diet is required before a kidney ultrasound.

You just need to remember that two or three before the procedure it is better to remove raw vegetables and fruits, dairy products, and brown bread from your diet. You can eat sweets, but in limited quantities.

It is worth noting that ultrasound of the kidneys does not necessarily have to be done on an empty stomach.

You should also consult your doctor so that he can prescribe the necessary medications to reduce gas formation.

Diet before pelvic ultrasound

In this case, everything is also quite easy and simple.

Nutritionists strictly do not recommend consuming any baked goods!

Meat and foods that are difficult to digest and cause gas should also be excluded. The day before the procedure, you should only consume kefir or milk. It would be nice to do an enema.

Proper preparation for an abdominal ultrasound is an important part of guaranteeing reliable results. Informing the patient about the rules of preparation for an abdominal ultrasound is within the competence of the doctor who gave the referral for such a diagnosis.

An abdominal ultrasound is performed both for therapeutic diagnosis and before surgery. This type of ultrasound is completely harmless, even when performed multiple times.

Why do you need to prepare for an ultrasound?

Preparation for an ultrasound of the abdominal organs should include the following activities:

• special diet and diet before the procedure;
• eliminating existing bad habits;
• adjustment of medication regimen;
• cleansing the gastrointestinal tract.

A diet before an abdominal ultrasound will allow you to properly prepare for a diagnostic examination. If diagnostics of diseases of the abdominal organs is planned in the near future, then it is recommended to abandon other diagnostic measures for a while, for example, radiography with the use of a contrast agent.

Distortion of ultrasound results can be caused by factors such as:

• cramps and contractions of intestinal smooth muscles during the examination;
• gassy intestines;
• abdominal obesity;
• significant skin damage in the abdominal area;
• the presence in the intestine of remnants of a contrast agent that was used when performing an X-ray of the abdominal cavity;
• excessive physical activity during ultrasound.

A diet before undergoing an ultrasound examination of the abdominal cavity allows you to level out the amount of gases and processed food in the intestines, which affects the reliability of the data obtained

Increased gas formation is often an obstacle to a full diagnosis, since accumulated gases interfere with clear visualization of organs. The fat layer in the abdominal area also interferes with the visualization of organs. In this case, ultrasonic waves cannot penetrate deep into the tissues and reflect the organs being examined.

Dietary regimen before the examination

Approximately 3-6 days before the expected day of abdominal examination, you should follow a strict diet. The main task is to eliminate and prevent increased gas formation. Therefore, at this time it is forbidden to consume foods that contribute to the formation of gases. The following foods should be temporarily excluded from the diet:

• carbonated drinks;
• milk;
• all legumes, regardless of cooking method;
• raw vegetables;
• fruits that provoke the formation of gas;
• sweets and yeast products;
• cottage cheese and fermented milk products;
• strong drinks containing caffeine;
• black breads;
• fatty fish and meats;
• alcohol.

It is allowed to eat boiled beef and chicken, preferably brisket and quail meat. Eating fish is allowed baked, boiled or steamed. It is allowed to eat boiled eggs, but only 1 piece per day. It is advisable to eat porridge cooked in water, with the exception of rice. It is allowed to include low-fat hard cheese in the diet.

An important part of the diet is the diet; you need to eat often and in small portions. You can't drink while eating. It is recommended to drink at least 1.5 liters of clean water per day. This diet should be followed until the evening before the day of the ultrasound.

It is advisable that ultrasound of the digestive organs be performed in the morning and on an empty stomach. If the procedure is planned for the second half of the day, then a light snack is decided; you cannot eat before the procedure.

Taking carminatives

To solve problems associated with the formation and accumulation of gases in the abdominal cavity, you can take one of the drugs: Espumisan, Smecta, white or activated carbon. If a child is undergoing an ultrasound, then Espumisan and Bobotik are suitable. Children should not drink activated carbon. Dosages of drugs are indicated in the annotation.

If Espumisan is recommended for use before diagnosis for 3 days, then these sorbents can be taken only the night before, this will be enough to relieve symptoms that interfere with ultrasound. If adult patients do not have a history of pancreatitis, then they can take their usual medications that improve digestion.

Colon cleansing

In order to properly prepare for an ultrasound of the abdominal organs, it is also necessary to carry out bowel cleansing procedures. An enema is used for this; it is given the day before the diagnostic examination, in the evening. Take Esmarch's mug and fill it with cool water from the tap, about 1.5 liters. After a cleansing enema, it is recommended to take sorbents or drugs to eliminate bloating in the abdominal cavity.

After giving an enema, symptoms of bloating may appear, so it is recommended to take sorbent drugs

If it is not possible to give an enema, then you can use microenemas such as Microlax or Norgalax for these purposes. Instead of a cleansing enema using an Esmarch mug, you can take herbal laxatives. In addition, the powdered drug Fortrans will help cleanse the intestines. Before use, it must be dissolved in water and drunk within an hour, preferably taken before 7 pm. It is approved for use only by persons over 14 years of age.

• you should not smoke a couple of hours before the examination;
• It is advisable not to eat candy or chewing gum;
• if radiography with a contrast agent was performed, then at least 2 days should pass before the ultrasound examination;
• in the presence of chronic conditions that require taking medications on an ongoing basis, you need to inform the ultrasound doctor about this;
• If the kidneys are to be examined, it is advisable to fill the bladder. To do this you need to drink about 0.5 liters. liquids, it is better to drink still water or tea without sugar. The bladder is released only after the examination.

It is necessary to prepare for an abdominal ultrasound in compliance with all prescribed rules and recommendations. If you prepare correctly, you can reliably determine the cause of abdominal pain, assess the condition of the liver and gallbladder, identify kidney diseases, and examine the pancreas. In addition, such an examination will allow us to identify life-threatening conditions for the patient, for example, acute appendicitis, and promptly prescribe additional diagnostics and treatment for appendicitis or another disease.

Today, ultrasound diagnostics of the abdominal organs is the most popular procedure.

This method is considered the most informative. What can you eat and drink before an abdominal ultrasound, as it helps to quickly identify problem areas of internal organs, diagnose the level of damage to the pancreas, gallbladder and ducts, as well as the liver.

Ultrasound diagnostics is carried out in such cases as:

• Abdominal pain of an unspecified nature.
• Identification and diagnosis of features of abdominal aortic aneurysm.
• Diagnosis of liver diseases.
• Detection of stones in the gallbladder and its ducts.
• Diagnosis of tumors and inflammatory processes of the pancreas.
• Treatment of the digestive system.

It can be noted that the intestine, both large and small, due to its structure, reflects ultrasonic waves and is difficult to diagnose in this way. Ultrasound can only detect their visible structural changes. But with all this, intestinal spasms, food masses or accumulation of gases complicate the ultrasound diagnostic procedure. This, in turn, can lead to an incorrect diagnosis and, as a result, a worsening of the patient’s general condition.

Therefore, in order for an ultrasound examination of the abdominal cavity to be correct and provide maximum information, careful and responsible preparation for undergoing this procedure is necessary, namely diet. So what can you eat before an abdominal ultrasound?

What you can and cannot eat during ultrasound

It takes 3 or 2 days to prepare for the ultrasound diagnostic procedure, and it is important to remove from the diet those foods that can cause irritation or contribute to the development of flatulence in the intestines. Under no circumstances should you use:

Pepper and spices of any kind also have an irritating effect.

The most popular irritants are strong tea and coffee. The fact that it is important to stop drinking alcoholic beverages, even in small quantities, is not worth mentioning. Is it possible to smoke? In no case!

Not only does smoking itself have a negative effect on the body, but this procedure is also accompanied by the process of “absorption” of air that accumulates in the intestines. In addition, chewing gum is also accompanied by the effect of air accumulation in the intestines.

You will learn about proper preparation for an abdominal ultrasound from the video presented:

What foods can you eat during ultrasound?

What can you eat before an abdominal ultrasound? The menu during preparation for an ultrasound must necessarily consist of easily digestible products, which include:

• Porridges made from cereals such as rice, buckwheat and oatmeal, cooked in water.
• You can have boiled poultry or boiled beef.
• Fish that does not contain fat, boiled or steamed.
• You can use low-fat hard cheese.
• A soft-boiled egg, but no more than one per day.

Eating should be frequent at regular intervals. Portions should be small, and food should be taken slowly so as not to “swallow” air. You can drink water or weakly brewed tea, no more than 1.5 liters per day.

An ultrasound is often performed in the morning on an empty stomach, but even if this is the case, you should eat your last meal no later than 8 pm the previous day. You should not take liquid before an ultrasound; this will worsen the image and complicate the diagnosis. It also happens that ultrasound diagnostics are carried out during the day or towards the end of the working day. In this case, a light breakfast is allowed, which must be taken no later than 11 a.m. After it, it is forbidden to eat, drink and smoke.

It is also important to know that for people with increased flatulence, the doctor may prescribe special enzymes. Additional medication support is also prescribed for people suffering from constipation. If the patient is already taking any medications, then it is worth informing the attending physician about this; he can prescribe special enzymes that neutralize the effect of the drugs. The diet does not change.

Ultrasound should not be performed after radiopaque diagnostics of the gastrointestinal tract and endoscopic diagnostics.

We should also not forget that not only adult patients, but also children are preparing for ultrasound examination. So, before the ultrasound procedure, children under 1 year old skip one feeding, that is, they do not eat for 24 hours, and they should not drink water 1 hour before the diagnosis. The same applies to children aged 1 to 3 years: 4 hours before ultrasound diagnostics, they stop taking food and water. If the child is over 3 years old, then he follows a strict “diet”: he abstains from food and drink for 6 hours before the test.

If the patient has had ultrasound diagnostics performed in the past, he should take the results with him. They will help the attending physician track the dynamics of changes and make the correct diagnosis.

It is also worth remembering that there are factors that can distort the ultrasound diagnostic picture and a repeat examination may be necessary. These factors include:

• Intestinal muscle spasms that may occur after a previous endoscopy.
• Often, intestinal spasms are observed in those patients who have bad habits.
• Increased flatulence.
• Excess weight can also distort the ultrasound image, as the depth of penetration of the ultrasound beam decreases.
• Any movements not approved by the doctor may also cause a repeat ultrasound diagnosis.

If the above points do not always directly depend on the person, then preparing one’s own intestines for ultrasound diagnostics is entirely the responsibility of the patient. It should be remembered that a correct diagnosis is the key to positive recovery dynamics, so there is no need to neglect the two-day diet and know exactly what you can eat. It is necessary to eliminate from your diet all dairy products, baked goods and confectionery products (only a small amount of white bread is allowed), legumes, carbonated drinks, spices and peppers, hot sauces, cabbage, potatoes, fruits, fatty meats and fish. Apart from regulating your diet, you need to take care of other intestinal problems, if any.

You should consult your doctor about this; perhaps he will recommend special medications that reduce flatulence or improve digestion. Before the ultrasound, you should also get rid of constipation and excess feces. Only in this case will ultrasound diagnostics of the abdominal organs be productive. Now you know what you can eat before an abdominal ultrasound.