Cystoscopy

Cystoscopy is an office procedure used for diagnosis of various bladder and urethra conditions, and to answer certain clinical questions for people who have more extreme cases of incontinence. In this procedure, we fill the patient’s bladder with fluid, which our doctor examines through a telescope in only a few minutes.

We use cystoscopy to examine the lining of your bladder and the tube that carries urine out of your body (this is the urethra). We insert a hollow tube (cystoscope) equipped with a lens into your urethra and slowly advance the tube into your bladder. We can do this procedure in a testing room, using a local anesthetic jelly to numb the urethra. We might also perform cystoscopy as an outpatient procedure, with sedation. Another option is to have cystoscopy performed in the hospital under general anesthesia. Where you go depends on the reason for your procedure. We might recommend cystoscopy to: