Kidney stones

How are kidney stones diagnosed?

Diagnosing Kidney Stones

Methods to diagnose kidney stones are:

Abdominal ultra sound (to visualize the stones, ascertain their position)
Blood tests to check for excess uric acid or calcium
CT-scan or X-ray
Pyelography (Intravenous pyelogram (IVP) is an x-ray exam that uses an injection of contrast material to evaluate your kidneys, ureters and bladder and help diagnose blood in the urine or pain in your side or lower back)

Medically Reviewed by a doctor on 23 Jan 2018
Medical Author: Dr. med. Diana Hysi

Articles for kidney stones

Do herbal teas and green/white teas have an effect on kidney stone formation?

Herbal and green teas generally have lower amounts of oxalate than black tea. High amounts of oxalate can cause kidney stones, and the dietary recommendations for you would depend on the type of kidney stone that you have.

What are the symptoms of kidney stones?

Symptoms of kidney stones include localized pain depending on the positioning of the stone, pain during urination, cloudy urine, odd-smelling urine, etc.

How are kidney stones diagnosed?

Methods to diagnose kidney stones are: abdominal ultra sound, blood tests to check for excess uric acid or calcium, CT-scan or X-ray, pyelography.

How are kidney stones treated?

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are usually used to treat and alleviate the pain, and in cases of severe pain, tramadol may be used. In the case of infection, antibiotics may be used.

Introduction

Kidney stones can develop in one or both kidneys and most often affect people aged 30 to 60. They're quite common, with around three in 20 men and up to two in 20 women developing them at some stage of their lives.

Symptoms

Read about the symptoms of kidney stones, which usually only occur if a stone gets stuck in your kidney, if it starts to travel down the ureter, or if it causes an infection.

Causes

Find out what causes kidney stones. They're usually the result of a build-up of a substance such as calcium, ammonia or uric acid in the body.

Diagnosis

Find out how kidney stones are diagnosed. Imaging tests, such as a computerised tomography (CT) scan, can be used to help confirm the diagnosis or locate a kidney stone.