This month was a hectic month for me as I had an eGFR test and two specialist appointments.

My quarterly appointment with my nephrologist (kidney doctor) as well as with my ophthalmologist (eye doctor)

This was the third or fourth time I had done an eGFR test and I wanted to write about my experience.

For those of you who don’t know, in simple terms an eGFR test is basically like an extended blood test to measure kidney function.

Radioactive material is injected into your arm and you repeat bloods every 2 hours for half the day – 6 hrs or so.

The test started at 9am and the first injection was given. I didn’t feel too different for the first fifteen minutes other than a bit tired having to wake up at 9 am lol.

The injection itself was very easy. I was led to corner of the radiology unit and given the injection in my arm through a butterfly needle and bloods were also taken at this time.

Shoutout to Seth the radiologist who was very nice and kept me calm the whole time 😇

While I did have a litre of water beforehand, the effect of the dye is strongest in the first hour or so and I was feeling quite irritable and was struggling with a headache.

For those undergoing this test I would recommend being thoroughly hydrated and satiated.

Best to drink at least 1L of water beforehand as well as take small sips constantly straight after the test. Use ice cubes or chilled water if possible as this provides additional migraine relief.

Eat a light meal – rice or cereal with low spice or plain boiled pasta with no irritants and take an anti-diaorrhea tablet or antihistamine as the dye can cause GI issues.

We had two hours until the next dose. My mum was very nice and had brought me so afterwards we went out to Pancakes on the Rocks and had lunch.

We shared a chicken mushroom crepe and salad. It was amazing and would highly recommend. Note – the restaurant uses a barcode ordering system.

This can be confusing at times, especially if you are going with older people or are unprepared (i.e your phone is low on battery or with unstable internet)

The menu can be found here – and if visiting one of the establishments, order directly at the counter and then be seated.

After lunch we headed back to the hospital and did the second round of bloods. There was a bit more of a wait this time as it was mid afternoon, however I was feeling a lot better after eating and drinking.

We then had another 2 hour gap. My mum works in the hospital so we visited her office and waited while I browsed on the computer.

Around 3pm we went back for our final set of bloods and headed home 🙂

Hope this is a helpful insight for anyone else undergoing this test!

Much love,

Luna