What Is an Arthrogram?
An arthrogram (AR-thruh-gram) is a test done to look inside a joint for injuries or other problems. It takes pictures that give doctors a view of the soft tissue in a joint, which a regular X-ray can't do. This helps them find the cause of problems like joint pain or swelling.
Also called arthrography (ar-THROG-ruh-fee), it's usually done to check knee and shoulder joints. Sometimes doctors examine other joints, like the wrist, ankle, hip, or elbow. Less often, doctors do arthrograms to put medicine inside a joint to relieve pain.
How Are Arthrograms Done?
Radiologists (doctors who diagnose and treat problems using medical imaging) do arthrograms. The radiologist will:
- Numb the skin around the joint.
- Put a thin needle into the joint.
- Inject contrast dye into the joint to help make the pictures clearer.
- Take X-rays of the joint in different positions.
If an arthrography is done to give medicine, it's injected into the joint with the needle.
Less often, radiologists use an ultrasound, fluoroscopy (a continuous type of X-ray that takes moving pictures), CT scan (a type of X-ray that takes very detailed pictures), or MRI to get the pictures rather than an X-ray.
Sometimes doctors do an arthrogram during surgery. The pictures can help them make treatment decisions during the surgery.