Diagnosis

Kidney Stones

Diagnosis

The diagnosis of kidney stones is carried out through a series of tests. Nowadays, when a person arrives at the Emergency Room with renal colic, with intense stabbing lumbar pain, it is usual to perform a blood analysis, a urine analysis, an abdominal X-ray and, probably, an ultrasound, at least in an acute stage of colic.

With these tests it is possible to detect whether there are stones or not, what size they are and where they are located. If this is not enough and the patient has some complication or the problem is not determined, it would be advisable to request a CAT scan, since, currently and according to European guidelines, it is agreed that this is the most specific test to determine whether or not there is lithiasis, where it is located, what size it is and what its composition is.

In this sense, when the patient is referred to the office, i.e., without being in an emergency department context, a detailed study is carried out, starting with the clinical history and then a study based on imaging and laboratory tests. When studying a patient with urinary lithiasis, a wide variety of imaging tests are available:

• Simple abdominal radiography.
• Urological ultrasound.
• Computerized axial tomography.
• Intravenous urography.
• Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

In addition to these, a metabolic study is usually requested, which are blood and urine tests a little more specific, trying to find any pathology with respect to the hormones that regulate calcium and vitamin D.

The indication for each of these tests should be assessed by the specialist, not only for the correct diagnosis, but also to plan the most appropriate treatment.