Diagnosis of Cystocele
Diagnosing a cystocele requires medical tests and a physical exam of the vagina. Medical tests take place in a health care provider’s office, an outpatient center, or a hospital. The health care provider will ask about symptoms and medical history. A health care provider uses a grading system to determine the severity of a woman’s cystocele. A cystocele receives one of three grades depending on how far a woman’s bladder has dropped into her vagina:

grade 1-mild, when the bladder drops only a short way into the vagina

grade 2-moderate, when the bladder drops far enough to reach the opening of the vagina

grade 3-most advanced, when the bladder bulges out through the opening of the vagina

If a woman has difficulty emptying her bladder, a health care provider may measure the amount of urine left in the woman’s bladder after she urinates. The remaining urine is called the postvoid residual. A health care provider can measure postvoid residual with a bladder ultrasound. A bladder ultrasound uses a device, called a transducer, that bounces safe, painless sound waves off the bladder to create an image and show the amount of remaining urine. A specially trained technician performs the procedure, and a radiologist-a doctor who specializes in medical imaging-interprets the images. A woman does not need anesthesia.

A health care provider can also use a catheter-a thin, flexible tube-to measure a woman’s postvoid residual. The health care provider inserts the catheter through the woman’s urethra into her bladder to remove and measure the amount of remaining urine after the woman has urinated. A postvoid residual of 100 mL or more is a sign that the woman is not completely emptying her bladder. A woman receives local anesthesia.

A health care provider may use a voiding cystourethrogram-an x-ray exam of the bladder-to diagnose a cystocele as well. A woman gets a voiding cystourethrogram while urinating. The x-ray images show the shape of the woman’s bladder and let the health care provider see any problems that might block normal urine flow. An x-ray technician performs a voiding cystourethrogram, and a radiologist interprets the images. A woman does not need anesthesia; however, some women may receive sedation. A health care provider may order additional tests to rule out problems in other parts of a woman’s urinary tract.