Retrograde Pyelogram for Kidney Stones

The retrograde pyelogram uses a dye to find out whether a kidney stone or something else is blocking your urinary tract. During the test, your doctor will insert a thin, lighted tube (cystoscope) into the urethra. The urethra is the tube that carries urine from the bladder to outside the body. The doctor will then put a catheter through the cystoscope and into a ureter, which is a tube that carries urine from the kidney to the bladder. Dye is injected through the catheter, and X-rays are taken.

You will probably need a local or regional anesthetic with this procedure.

Your doctor may do this test if an intravenous pyelogram (IVP) does not help with the diagnosis. In an IVP, the dye is injected through a vein in your arm.