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)

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Medical Author: Dr. med. Diana Hysi

Articles for kidney stones

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.

Treatment

Find out how kidney stones are treated. The treatment you'll need will depend on the size and type of kidney stone you have.

Prevention

The best way of preventing kidney stones is to make sure you drink plenty of water each day to avoid becoming dehydrated.

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.

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