• Welcome to Crohn's Forum, a support group for people with all forms of IBD. While this community is not a substitute for doctor's advice and we cannot treat or diagnose, we find being able to communicate with others who have IBD is invaluable as we navigate our struggles and celebrate our successes. We invite you to join us.

Barium Meal

Kuwabara

Kuwabara

Hey guys, got a phone call from my Specialist today. I've got a Barium Meal next week, what are these things like? No prep just gotta starve after 9pm the night before. It seems quite straight forward only annoying thing is that it takes three hours. Can you read/listen to your I-Pod between the X-Rays?

Cheers guys

p.s Hope everyone in the UK has a good Bonfire night
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guy_Fawkes_Night
(For our brothers and sisters overseas)
 
F

forum contributor

Captain Obvious
Hey, James.

Barium's a lot easier than the prep. Are they having you mix it with anything beforehand, or just drinking it when you get there? I've done both. When I got to mix it, I did it with a cran-strawberry juice. I think other people like to use Gatorade. When I didn't get to mix it, it was just a thick white chalky-tasting liquid... it wasn't good by any means, but it wasn't death either.

What are you taking it for? When I had my last one done, they had me walking around the hospital for three or four hours so it would move through my system quicker. If that's the case for you, I say definitely bring a book/your iPod!!! It'll help pass the time. All I had was a TV that was showing the same boring news over and over so much that I new the stories before they came on :tongue:
 
xX_LittleMissValentine_Xx

xX_LittleMissValentine_Xx

Moderator
Location
Reading,
hey :)
I had one of these when I was going through diagnosis. Definately not anything to worry about. The barium gets a little bit hard to drink after a while, but thats the same if u try and drink alot of anything! With me they had flavoured it with something, to make it a bit sweeter.
And I would say yes, do bring your ipod I think i just read a magazine :)
xxx
 
Kuwabara

Kuwabara

I'm just drinking whatever they offer me when I get there I think Ris - I presume they have the stuff to mix it with there too. I dont mind it if its unmixed anyway - I think there's stick insects out there with richer palettes than myself, I'm not too fussy.

Its weird my colonoscopy and biopsies all show active Crohn's disease, but my MRI scan came back fine and apparantly because that was fine when my specialist took my case to the Board where they approve people for the remicade apparantly there were some who believed I should have a barium meal to get the complete picture. I'm not too bothered myself I'm happy to do it. I've got a letter saying I have been approved for Remicade so long as I just do this barium meal, even then I think I'd still get it if even if I decided to refuse the barium meal. But as you say in diagnostic terms a barium meal is a walk in the park, or in your case a short walk around the hospital!There's a cute girl who works at the Pharmacy in the hospital - I may go down and gaze blissfully.

It'll give me an excuse to nuckle down and read anyway - i'm trying to read the entire works of Doestoevsky by Christmas and I'm lagging. Perhaps I shouldnt choose to continue my reading of 'House of the Dead'. Some of the other patients may think its a bit insensitive! 'I'm not dead yet you cheeky git!'.

Thanks for the advice too Holl x
 
T

Theresa

Hi James, I am currently in the process of all the tests, I have had the Barral Meal and will say that this test is fine. I like you just had to starve the night before and then took the prep at the hospital. I had to drink an anti sickness liquid and then two cups of white thick liquid, this really was not that bad. They then waited for about 20min before taking xrays. I have a really fast transit and so was not in xray very long, they then took me to another machine and made me lie down whilst they took more xrays and moved about from left to right. I would say that the only thing with the drink stuff they give you is that when you do pass this it can be very stubborn to flush as its heavy! Hope it goes ok for you, keep us posted!
 
DanSJVDavis

DanSJVDavis

If it's an upper GI with small bowel follow through, they'll give you a little cup with liquid and some crystals dissolving in it to drink to put air in your stomach and then tell you to try not to burp up the air (tastes something like unflavored alka-seltzer). Then you get to drink a couple big cups of barium. Back when I first got Crohn's it wasn't flavored at all and tasted pretty much like chalk. Then they started flavoring it, so now it tastes like strawberry chalk. They'll tell you to drink as much of the barium as possible each time. They'll take a number of X-Rays, depending on how fast it moves through. They always say a couple hours, but my bowels work so fast that I'm usually done in 45 minutes or so. They'll tell you to drink plenty of liquids after the test to help pass the barium because it can cause constipation if it stays in the bowels too long. And that's about it.
 
imisspopcorn

imisspopcorn

Punctuation Impaired
Kuwabara said:
I'm just drinking whatever they offer me when I get there I think Ris - I presume they have the stuff to mix it with there too. I dont mind it if its unmixed anyway - I think there's stick insects out there with richer palettes than myself, I'm not too fussy.

Its weird my colonoscopy and biopsies all show active Crohn's disease, but my MRI scan came back fine and apparantly because that was fine when my specialist took my case to the Board where they approve people for the remicade apparantly there were some who believed I should have a barium meal to get the complete picture. I'm not too bothered myself I'm happy to do it. I've got a letter saying I have been approved for Remicade so long as I just do this barium meal, even then I think I'd still get it if even if I decided to refuse the barium meal. But as you say in diagnostic terms a barium meal is a walk in the park, or in your case a short walk around the hospital!There's a cute girl who works at the Pharmacy in the hospital - I may go down and gaze blissfully.

It'll give me an excuse to nuckle down and read anyway - i'm trying to read the entire works of Doestoevsky by Christmas and I'm lagging. Perhaps I shouldnt choose to continue my reading of 'House of the Dead'. Some of the other patients may think its a bit insensitive! 'I'm not dead yet you cheeky git!'.

Thanks for the advice too Holl x
Click to expand...
James, they probably are just trying to determine if you have any narrowing in the lumen of the small bowel. It's good to have these tests done now. Down the road you may get sicker and they will be able to compare scans to see how much the disease has progressed.
Good luck...I think your nickname should be Lady Killer;) Be nice to the girl at the pharmacy.
 
Nancy Lee

Nancy Lee

Hi James,

I think it's probably for a small bowel follow through too.
Funny thing is when I went just a couple of months ago
they told me to prepare to be there for 3 or 4 hours....
that they would take an x-ray every 20 minutes.

I drank the strawberry 'shake' (no idea why they call it a 'meal') :confused2:

..waited 20 minutes...they took an x-ray...
I used the washroom afterward..which is conveniently very close...
next x-ray 20 minutes later it had already passed through me.

I wasn't even there an hour tops.

You'll do just fine! :)

Oh! Happy Guy Fawkes Night !!
 
Rhonda

Rhonda

Keith's last Barium Meal they put Hershey's syrup in it. His first was plain.. so he thought as gross as it was Chocolate was better than nothing at all.
 
shazamataz

shazamataz

Hi James,

I am pretty sure this is what i was given before getting an MRI. The stuff to drink is nothing like as bad as the prep for colonoscopy. I had to drink 3 big bottles of this thick stuff that had a bubblegum flavour to it. The first one was easy because I was really hungry after fasting! The others took a little longer, but i was in the MRI aftre about 1.5 hours. I found I couldn;t relax and read or anything because I was too busy drinking the stuff.
And just as a warning, just in case as I don;t know which bits you are getting looked at, When the put me on the MRI machine, they also had to squirt water up my bum. And THAT was the worst part as I had to do everything in my power to hold it in there for 30 minutes whilst also holding my breath everytime the scan went click. Was well proud I managed to do that but it wasn;t easy! Thank goodness though because I am sure when i sprinted to the loo aftrewards there was LITRES of the stuff!

Let us know how it goes eh?
 
Kuwabara

Kuwabara

Thanks for the advice/experiences guys. Its all up there for thinking, down there for dancing.

Miss Popcorn although I apreciate the sentiment 'Lady Killer' sounds kind of morbid! My heart's not in any Lady killing anyway - I'm one of these idiots who falls in love with people who are taken. D'oh. I'm not handsome enough to pull off such a alias anyway!

Sure I'll keep you posted. x
 
kskitt

kskitt

Last time i had a barium meal, it was through a tube so i didnt have to actually swallow anything :) Yeah flushin the white chalk off the toilet is a problem, just flush minimum 3 times
 
Pirate

Pirate

Just make sure you drink a lot of water afterwards. It will turn into a cement like substance and can cause a blockage. I didn't flush it very good and ended up in the hospital because of it.

Drink lots of water afterwards!!!
 
Agent X20

Agent X20

Location
West Yorkshire, UK
I also found that flushing away the white stuff was a problem. Kept coming for ages afterwards and settled in a thick white powder at the bottom of the toilet. I kept stirring it up with a stick (a garden cane) and then trying to flush it away while it was still in suspension. It's something to do if there's nothing on TV.

Like Nancy, I was supposed to have a follow through, but it went through me in double quick time... hardly enough time to get through the first page of the tome I'd brought with me to read.
 
Kuwabara

Kuwabara

Ris,I shall be dining out at the finest Barium establishment on Thursday at 9.00am GMT exactly.

I hope I have an experience like Nancy and Steve and it's over quite shortish.I'm looking forward to a full English breakfast and a cup of tea afterwards.

I've got two big 2litre bottles of water ready for afterwards anyway - should be no problem.
 
Kuwabara

Kuwabara

Whoa Whoa whoa! You've never had a full English? The point of a full English is to cure a hangover through the application of fat,grease and sheer indulgence. Were talking Eggs,Mushrooms,Bacon,Sausage,Baked Beans,Hash browns,toast - that's the classic combination but there are optional adds ons such as black pudding,tomato,waffles,chips...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Full_english_breakfast

Its basically cholerstoral on a plate
 
F

forum contributor

Captain Obvious
Kuwabara said:
Whoa Whoa whoa! You've never had a full English? The point of a full English is to cure a hangover through the application of fat,grease and sheer indulgence. Were talking Eggs,Mushrooms,Bacon,Sausage,Baked Beans,Hash browns,toast - that's the classic combination but there are optional adds ons such as black pudding,tomato,waffles,chips...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Full_english_breakfast

Its basically cholerstoral on a plate
Click to expand...
Oh James.... I think I just threw up my shoes :lol:
 
imisspopcorn

imisspopcorn

Punctuation Impaired
Yes, I have had Yorkshire pudding...with prime rib....I'm assuming it was made from the left over bits from the prime rib...It's more like a gravy pie??
 
Kuwabara

Kuwabara

"Maine lobsters, truffles, tons of oysters. giant gulf shrimp cocktails. caviar, truffles, beef tenderloin, rack of lamb, and more"

My God, you guys know how to eat!

No.5 looks good the Villiage Seafood Buffet - Love a bit of crab.( I could make a crude joke about crabs here but I'll refrain)
 
imisspopcorn

imisspopcorn

Punctuation Impaired
Kuwabara said:
"Maine lobsters, truffles, tons of oysters. giant gulf shrimp cocktails. caviar, truffles, beef tenderloin, rack of lamb, and more"

My God, you guys know how to eat!

No.5 looks good the Villiage Seafood Buffet - Love a bit of crab.( I could make a crude joke about crabs here but I'll refrain)
Click to expand...
I stay clear of the buffets....I just think they are hilarious.
 
imisspopcorn

imisspopcorn

Punctuation Impaired
Kuwabara said:
How bad is obesity in the states?
Click to expand...
Just as bad as the UK....Usually the southern part of the US (also home to some of the poorest people in the country) has the highest rates. I don't know the exact rate for the entire country.
Edit:I googled it 32%....yikes!
 
Last edited:
Kuwabara

Kuwabara

We are the worst in Europe.It's a shame. In fact we hold some of the worst records in Europe - teenage pregnancy,drug use,obesity. Were really good at letting ourselves go!
 
imisspopcorn

imisspopcorn

Punctuation Impaired
Kuwabara said:
We are the worst in Europe.It's a shame. In fact we hold some of the worst records in Europe - teenage pregnancy,drug use,obesity. Were really good at letting ourselves go!
Click to expand...
Ahhh...Just wait another 20 years. Your just a pup. Aging requires a lot of maintenance....Well, I believe the US has the worst rates as far a developed countries go...
 
CrohnieCarolyn

CrohnieCarolyn

Barium meal! Sounds like you will be sitting down with a knife n' fork in each hand with a napkin tied around your neck - lol Where I'm from we call it a Barium swallow..gulp... mine was horrid and I almost puked a few times trying to get it all down...wished mine was flavored. If you are not feeling nauseous you should be okay...and yes keep an eye out for white poops and the like in the "loo"
 
I

ian2782

I had a barium meal and follow thorugh yesterday. Pretty straight forward. I turned up, they gave me 2 cartons of barium to drink (4 plastic cupfulls0. Didn't taste great but wasn't too bad either. had an x-ray 30 mins later to see how far the barium was through my system. Had another x-ray about 30 mins later. Then had what they call the screening, where the doctor screens you with a scanning machine. All in all took 2 and a half hours. X-rays took about 2 mins each and 5 minutes for the screening.

Rest of the time was spent sitting in the waiting room. Didn't take my ipod :(. And all the magazines were for women.

Worst thing about it was the waiting room was freezing and I was only wearing a hospital gown! No side effects or anything from the barium. Easy!
 
Kuwabara

Kuwabara

Haha mate trust me the only difficult bit comes after the barium test - that stuff is incredibly...erm how should one put it -'dense'
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top