Effect of distributing urine-collection bags on contrast-material load in wastewater.

Summary: When you get an MRI or CT scan, doctors use special dyes to help see inside your body. After the scan, you pee these dyes out. They end up in our water system because water treatment plants can't clean them out. In this study, doctors tried giving patients special bags to pee in at home so the dye wouldn't go down the toilet. They found that giving out these bags helped a little bit, but not nearly as much as they hoped. Even though people said they used the bags, testing the water showed the dyes were still there. This means we can't just trust what people say they do; we actually have to test the water to see if our ideas are working to keep it clean.