Ok. This kinda science related cause I am a boob and don't know much about this stuff.


What little research I did do informed me that barium is a type metal, but not like, for example, actual steel.


So anyway, this past Sunday, our city did it's annual health check. You know, kinda like a physical. Blood test, vision test, heart check, chest x-ray.

Well, one other check that was done (that I didn't have to, but opted to) was to drink a barium solution then lay on a table for an x-ray or something. The wife said it had something to do with checking the stomach, but that was all she could tell me.

Afterwards, they gave me a couple of pills that would be to help me poo out the substance. I took the pills and about an hour later was in the loo doing my business.

My question is, is ingesting this stuff safe? I know it gets flushed out pretty quick with the pills I was given, but man, later in the evening and most of today, I felt absolutely horrible. No energy, no appetite and just really run-down feeling.

Any insights to this nasty concoction of a drink?

I've had it done before and only had mild constipation for a day or two. Was having problems swallowing cold things. My real question is what kind of pills did they give you? If it was a diuretic you could be dehydrated.

Yeah, I believe it was a diuretic. They told me it was to help me poo so I could get it out of my system quickly. So, there is that possibility. I went though about a litre and a half of water yesterday afternoon.


Thanks for your info, though.

To my knowledge, it's like a "tracer" to highlight your digestive system. Obviously metal shows up darker on an X-ray, so your digestive system would be "lowlighted" in a darker hue than the rest of the X-ray. Like putting fluorescent dye in a fuel system to track down a leak quicker, but in this case, to more easily see your insides.

Your city conducts a mandated health check?

Also, yes, you were dehydrated. If you have to do it again next year, drink a crap-ton of water a couple of days prior. It'll help out a lot. Diuretics also decrease your blood volume, so your cardiac output is decreased. Once all of the crap is out of your system and you are properly hydrated again, the fatigue and general 'blah' feeling will go away.

Ace2cool wrote:To my knowledge, it's like a "tracer" to highlight your digestive system. Obviously metal shows up darker on an X-ray, so your digestive system would be "lowlighted" in a darker hue than the rest of the X-ray. Like putting fluorescent dye in a fuel system to track down a leak quicker, but in this case, to more easily see your insides.

This. They gave me about a gallon of the stuff when I went to the ER for some awful stomach pains. It provides contrast to the x-ray so they can more closely identify whats wrong in your digestive tract. Turns out I "had an impressive case of constipation." They gave me a massive laxative and I pooped out about a ton of liquid.

I did the barium milkshake thing when I had an upper G.I. (needed to find out if I had a hiatal hernia). Not sure what was in my cocktail as compared to you guys, but I had the opposite problem. I was crapping my brains out for the rest of the day and needed stuff to make me stop.

Lesson learned: Science! makes you poo.

Generally, I like to investigate these things BEFORE ingesting them. Jusayn.

Who were you talking to, Adam?

ALL THE PEOPLE!

nissangirl74 wrote:Your city conducts a mandated health check?

Also, yes, you were dehydrated. If you have to do it again next year, drink a crap-ton of water a couple of days prior. It'll help out a lot. Diuretics also decrease your blood volume, so your cardiac output is decreased. Once all of the crap is out of your system and you are properly hydrated again, the fatigue and general 'blah' feeling will go away.

No. Not mandated. It was completely optional. But it was close, it was free and I haven't had a physical since I left the Navy.


But, thanks for all the info. I think next time...should I so choose to do the barium cocktail...I'll drink a couple drums of water beforehand.

Thanks!!!

AppleBonker wrote:Generally, I like to investigate these things BEFORE ingesting them. Jusayn.

That drunken dare at the party with that cute guy still haunts you don't it?

I've heard about that check, Kim did her health check a little while ago. I could ask my mom about it. She was an X-ray tech and later a CT-tech for a long time. She would know the straight scoop on the T1000 milkshake.

Reminds me of being injected with radioactive material in order to take images of your heart.

(Un?)fortunately, it doesn't lead to massive destruction when patients get angry.

HULK SMASH!


....WELL, AS SOON AS HULK FREE FROM THIS INFUSION PUMP AND HULK ALLOWED TO PUT PURPLE PANTS BACK ON


HULK SMASH!!

Just a metal, I don't believe it reacts with the body's digestive system at all. Just flushes all through.

Encryptshun wrote:HULK SMASH!


....WELL, AS SOON AS HULK FREE FROM THIS INFUSION PUMP AND HULK ALLOWED TO PUT PURPLE PANTS BACK ON


HULK SMASH!!

Dude, you're one of the few people that makes me truly LOL. Love it.

BTW - Side note: Get a colonoscopy at 30, even if your doc says you don't need it. I had diverticulitis (genetic) at 34, and it cost me my entire colon and 8 weeks with "outdoor plumbing". Also, someone you guys all know and loved would still be here if she'd had one - colon cancer is FAR more prevalent than we've been led to believe, and it's deadly.

Go schedule it. Seriously. I don't want you to have to endure what my family and I went through. It's that important.

I'm 35 and haven't had a coloscopy yet...and quite frankly, I don't think I want to do it here in Japan. Well, at least the area I live in. The hospitals all look to be close to 50 years old, and show it. They are very dreary looking here and I still don't know if I want someone here sticking a cam up my discharge pipe.

Greg, I had diverticulitis myself. Luckily it was caught very early. 5 days in the hospital, 3 of which with no food so they could thoroughly flush my system. Wouldn't wish that on anyone. That crap sucks!!!

IBCoupe wrote:Reminds me of being injected with radioactive material in order to take images of your heart.

I have had that done - in December of 2002.

Since I am a geek, I asked them to turn the monitors towards me so I could watch too!

Needless to say, I could easily tell that I needed heart work - the doctor did not have to tell me.

Z

FWIW I've had to have several chest through pelvis CT's and can confirm that the Barium contrast won't do anything long term. The biggest thing is to stay hydrated. That stuff will really dry you out.

szh wrote:I have had that done - in December of 2002.

Since I am a geek, I asked them to turn the monitors towards me so I could watch too!

Needless to say, I could easily tell that I needed heart work - the doctor did not have to tell me.

Z

Cool! Know what drug they injected you with? My folks work at the plant that makes Cardiolite.

IBCoupe wrote:

szh wrote:I have had that done - in December of 2002.

Since I am a geek, I asked them to turn the monitors towards me so I could watch too!

Needless to say, I could easily tell that I needed heart work - the doctor did not have to tell me.

Z

Cool! Know what drug they injected you with? My folks work at the plant that makes Cardiolite.

Yes, it is Cardiolite, as I seem to recall from my last visit. Please thank your parents for me!

I have Cardiolite stress tests done pretty regularly now - every two to three years now to check that things in my heart bypasses are flowing properly still.

EDIT: BTW, I just realized that I misspoke earlier - I have the Cardiolite stress tests every two to three years now. The radioactive blood flow images from before and after the treadmill stress test are processed and printed later, and I get to see them some time after the actual tests are complete.

What I had done in Dec 2002 was a live angiogram with radioactive (I think) material that they injected using a fine tube catheter shoved through an incision in my groin all the way to my heart. I don't know/remember what that material was - it showed up as dark fluid on the LCD screens that showed the images that I was watching as they did the work!

Z

Uhoh, Z. Now whenever you and Isaac are at loggerheads over some political issue, he's just going to say "Because Cardiolite".

Ha, Chad! I will.

My mom works in documentation, and my Dad designs the stress tests for the medicine itself; it's how they come up with the "Do not store over X degrees celsius" or whatever. But it took me a while to figure out what my Dad did. If you ever saw the episode of That 70's Show where it was "Take Your Son to Work Day," for most of my childhood, all I could say was that my dad was a "statistician," and any time he tried to explain anything more, it went something like it did for Kelso