What Is an Upper GI Series? An upper GI series is a group of X-ray tests that look at your GI tract -- your food pipe (the esophagus), stomach, and the first part of your small intestine (the ...

Nancy Kemeny, MD Well it's not painful, but really it's the upper GI and small bowel follow through, so you have to take a lot of pictures to watch the dye go through the whole small bowel ...