The use of non-contrast computed tomography and color Doppler ultrasound in the characterization of urinary stones - preliminary results

Özet

Objective: To investigate the role of density value in computed tomography (CT) and twinkling artifact observed in color Doppler analysis for the prediction of the mineral composition of urinary stones.Material and methods: A total of 42 patients who were operated via percutaneous or endoscopic means and had undergone abdominal non-contrast CT and color Doppler ultrasonography examinations were included in the study. X-ray diffraction method was utilized to analyze a total of 86 stones, and the correlations between calculated density values and twinkling intensities with stone types were investigated for each stone.Results: Analyses of extracted stones revealed the presence of 40 calcium oxalate monohydrate, 12 calcium oxalate dihydrate, 9 uric acid, 11 calcium phosphate, and 14 cystine stones. The density values were calculated as 1499±269 Hounsfield Units (HU) for calcium oxalate monohydrate, 1505±221 HU for calcium oxalate dihydrate, 348±67 HU for uric acid, 1106±219 HU for calcium phosphate, and 563±115 HU for cystine stones. The artifact intensities were determined as grade 0 in 15, grade 1 in 32, grade 2 in 24, and grade 3 in 15 stones. Conclusion: In case the density value of the stone is measured below 780 HU and grade 3 artifact intensity is determined, it can be inferred that the mineral composition of the stone tends to be cystine