Determination of renal stone composition with dual-energy computed tomography: an emerging application.
Urinary tract stone disease is common in the Western world. Nonenhanced computed tomography (CT) is the method of choice for stone diagnosis; however, it has a limited role in predicting stone type. Knowledge of stone composition is currently determined by postoperative assessment of stone fragments. A noninvasive tool for accurate characterization of stone composition would improve patient management. Dual-energy CT aids in the differentiation among calcium, uric acid, and cystine stones. In this review we describe the role of dual-energy CT for in vitro and in vivo analysis of urinary stones. We illustrate the technique, review the literature, and discuss future directions.
Eliahou
Ruth
R
Department of Radiology, Hadassah Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.
Hidas
Guy
G
Duvdevani
Mordechai
M
Sosna
Jacob
J
D002118:Calcium / Q000032:analysis; D003553:Cystine / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D007669:Kidney Calculi / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*; D014527:Uric Acid / Q000032:analysis; D014961:X-Ray Diffraction
D014527:Uric Acid; D003553:Cystine; D002118:Calcium