Kidney Stones Ct Scan Or Ultrasound. Ct scan for stone examination are the same as ct scan for cancer detection but with one important difference. This imaging technique is also helpful when it comes to diagnosing cystine crystals.
However more often than not a ct scan performed for evaluation of kidney stones without intravenous contrast will miss these diagnoses as well. To diagnose painful kidney stones in hospital emergency rooms ct scans are no better than less often used ultrasound exams according to a clinical study conducted at 15 medical centers. In this situation ct scan will not make any immediate difference.
Ct as initial test for kidney stones for patients with suspected nephrolithiasis clinical outcomes are similar when ultrasonography or computed tomography ct is used as the initial imaging test according to a real world trial published in the new england journal of medicine.
Unlike ultrasound ct exposes patients to significant amounts of radiation. The reason is that kidney stones are bright white on ct images. Small stones and those close to the corticomedullary junction can be difficult to reliably identify. However more often than not a ct scan performed for evaluation of kidney stones without intravenous contrast will miss these diagnoses as well.