Arthrogram

An arthrogram is a test to take pictures of the tissues inside your joint. These tissues include tendons, ligaments, muscles, and cartilage. First your doctor injects a contrast material, such as a dye or air, into your joint. Then imaging is done with X-rays, an MRI, or a CT scan.

An arthrogram is used to find the cause of symptoms in your joint. Symptoms may include pain, swelling, or abnormal movement of your joint. It may also be done to see if you can be helped with surgery, such as arthroscopy.

An arthrogram can:

• Find problems in your joint capsule, ligaments, or cartilage. Problems could include tears, arthritis, or disease. For example, this test may be used to help find problems such as rotator cuff tears. It may find problems with the bones of the joint.
• Find fluid-filled cysts.

• The skin and tissues over the joint will be numbed with medicine.
• The doctor will put a small needle into your joint. The doctor may remove a sample of the joint fluid for testing.
• Your doctor may use a fluoroscope to guide the needle and take a series of X-ray pictures of the joint.
• The doctor will inject a contrast material into your joint. This is usually dye, but it can also be saline, air, or a combination. It helps the doctor see the soft tissues of the joint. Then the doctor removes the needle.
• You may be asked to be still. Or you may be asked to move your joint.
• You may also have an MRI or a CT scan to get images of the joint.

Tell your doctor before your test if you:

• Are allergic to any type of contrast material.
• Are allergic to iodine. The dye used for this test may contain iodine.
• Are or might be pregnant.
• Have ever had a serious allergic reaction (anaphylaxis) from any substance. For instance, have you had a reaction from a bee sting or eating shellfish?
• Are allergic to any medicines. This includes anesthetics.
• Have asthma.
• Have bleeding problems or take blood-thinning medicines.
• Have arthritis that is bothering you at the time of your test.
• Have a known infection in or around your joint. The dye may make your infection worse.
• Have diabetes or take metformin (such as Glucophage) for your diabetes.
• Have kidney problems.

The radiologist may discuss the initial results with you after reviewing all the pictures. A detailed report will be available to your doctor in a few days.

Normal:

• The joint capsule, the sac containing joint fluid, is normal. The cartilage and other structures of the joint are normal.

Abnormal:

• The cartilage is worn down (degeneration) or there is a tear in the cartilage cushion of the joint.
• There is damage to the joint capsule, tendons, or ligaments.
• There is a cyst.

After seeing the condition of your joint area, your doctor may recommend further treatment with medicine, physical therapy, or surgery.