What is an MR Enterography? What should you expect for this imaging procedure, and how can you mentally prepare? In this blog post, I’ll break down these topics by sharing what I learned during my MRE experience.
What is an MR Enterography and What Does it Show?
Just a few weeks after my very first colonoscopy in 2014, I had my first MR Enterography, or MRE. The purpose was to take another look at my intestines and determine exactly what parts of my digestive tract were inflamed.
An MRE is a special type of MRI. While an MRI stands for magnetic resonance imaging, an MRE is magnetic resonance elastography. This means that the technology measures the elasticity of the patient’s body tissues. This is crucial when examining a patient with IBD because it can identify any abnormal thickening of the walls of the large and small intestines.
During MRE imaging, you get placed in a tube while you listen to the voice of the technician through the speakers and inhale and exhale on command as the machine takes images. The process usually takes between 30 – 60 minutes.
But what I discovered is that much like a colonoscopy, it’s not the procedure that’s dreadful—it’s the prep work.
Here’s What to Expect for your MRE Prep
Although doctors and practices may have variations to the MRE and the prep, this should give you the gist of what to expect.
Drinking the barium sulfate contrast dye
Upon arriving at the imaging center, I was led into the waiting room and given a tall glass of what reminded me of thick, spoiled milk.
It was a white, pudgy, creamy concoction that did not look like my drink of choice. And then the technician said that I had to chug it in fifteen minutes! Eww!
He explained that it is Barium Sulfate and it dyes your intestines; this helps the technicians during imaging so they can identify bowel from non-bowel structures and so they can more easily view intestinal inflammation.
But then the technician broke even worse news: I had to drink four of them in an hour—one every fifteen minutes! And he watched the time closely, dropping by every fifteen minutes to hand me the next tall glass.
I’m glad my mom came with me because she encouraged me to continue drinking the concoction. (And I sure needed the encouragement!)
Drinking Glass 2
I successfully downed the eight-ounce glass in about ten minutes. Overall, it wasn’t too bad, but I’d rather not do it again. But of course, I knew I had to.
The technician came back out with my second glass; again, I only had fifteen minutes to swallow it all. This one was a little harder to get down. Since it was so thick, I could feel it settle in my stomach and just chill there. This made my pace for the second one a little slower, as my brain said, “Stop! You’re full! Don’t drink any more until we digest what’s in there!”
But I wanted my MRE because I wanted results, so I ignored my brain and forced it down.
Drinking Glass 3
Third round! By now my tongue hated me, my stomach despised me, and I felt ridiculously full and sluggish. My mom continued to encourage me to keep sipping and reminded me that this nasty drink could not compare to the torture my ulcerative colitis symptoms put me through.
So I kept drinking.
Drinking Glass 4
By the time the technician brought out the fourth and final glass, my stomach was not only stuffed to the brim, but it felt as if it actually might reject the substance if I drank any more.
As he handed me this fourth glass, he informed me that the bathroom was right next to me in case I needed it. “Not everyone can keep it down,” he said.
Well, that’s encouraging, I thought to myself. And though I did run to the bathroom a few minutes later, it wasn’t because I couldn’t hold the barium down; it was because drinking so much liquid had filled my bladder to the brim. I went to the restroom three times within five minutes.
The MRE Test Itself
After the third bathroom stop, the technician had me change into my medical gown and then led me down the hallway to the MRE room. As I followed him down the hallway, I waddled as my bladder was already full again.
I laid on my back as he stressed the importance of remaining perfectly still; if I moved, it would mess up the images and he’d have to painstakingly reposition me into the exact same position. So I remained frozen as he slid me into the tube.
Inside the MRI Machine
Inside the tube was dim and loud. Ticks, rattles, beeps, and boops flooded my ears along with the recorded voice that instructed me when to inhale, exhale, and how long to hold my breath.
This process really wasn’t bad. The part that made it uncomfortable was how incredibly full my bladder was. This got worse when halfway through the technician repositioned me onto my stomach! Now I had pressure on my bladder and I legitimately thought I was going to pee my pants inside the tube.
I suffered through roughly thirty more minutes lying in this position. To top it all off, once the MRE was finally complete and I was sitting on the bed taking my earplugs out, the technician chuckled and said, “Wow, you really had to pee.”
I had no idea they could see my bladder as they took images of my intestines!
How to Mentally Prepare for Your MRE
To be honest, I wasn’t ready for this MRE in the sense that I had absolutely no idea what to expect or how to prepare. Here are a few things I learned that might help this process go a little smoother for you.
1. Accept that the prep is going to suck
I was completely taken by surprise with being forced to drink four tall glasses of barium sulfate. If you know this ahead of time, you’ll be mentally prepared to take this on!
2. Know that you’re going to be uncomfortable
I’m the kind of person who likes to know the step-by-step details of new medical experiences. So if you’re like me, just know that you’re going to be uncomfortable. Your stomach will hurt from the dye and your bladder will be constantly full. That’s okay. You’re strong, and you will get through it.
3. Prepare relaxation techniques for when you’re inside the machine
Being inside an MRE machine can cause anxiety for some people. Plan ahead by coming in with ready-to-go relaxation techniques that will help keep you calm during your time in the tube. For me, I like to focus on my (assigned) breathing, the technician’s voice coming through the speakers, and really digging into how I’m feeling emotionally at the moment. I kind of treat it like a meditation practice.
4. Know that no matter how gross or uncomfortable, it will be worth it
Every test, every procedure, every x-ray that you do—no matter how painful or gross or uncomfortable—will give your doctor more necessary information to get answers.
Pre-diagnosis testing is not fun, but I encourage you to try to put it into perspective that no testing will be as painful as IBD symptoms or as uncomfortable as not having answers.
Do not forget: you can do hard things.
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