Pilot study from University of Pennsylvania Masters of public health graduate student

2023

The first-ever study examining the long-term health outcomes in adulthood for former VCUG patients.

The VCUG group saw themselves as unhealthier and had more feelings/diagnosis of depression and PTSD.
No one in the non-VCUG group experienced shy bladder, overactive bladder, or urinary retention. These were prevalent in some way within the VCUG group.
The VCUG group showed pelvic dysfunction, while the non-VCUG group did not.
81% of the non-VCUG group has had a pap smear compared to 44% of the VCUG group. 50% of the VCUG group has never seen a gynecologist and doesn’t plan to go.
The VCUG group felt less comfortable receiving hugs from loved ones, especially parents.
Nearly all members of the VCUG group agreed they had experienced medical trauma as a child, agreed that their bodies were disrespected as children, strongly believed that their parents and doctors did not make the right choices for their medical care, and felt inherently less understood.
The VCUG group experienced more nightmares, restlessness, odd bodily sensations, and intense pre-bedtime rituals.