Causes and Diagnoses

Causes and Diagnoses of Kidney Stones

Kidney stones happen when urine becomes supersaturated with crystals. This can happen if there is:

Many conditions can cause you to have kidney stones, such as:

Imbalances in your diet
Side effect of medications and supplements
Chronic dehydration
Hereditary factors, such as cystinuria, primary hyperoxaluria, Dent disease and APRT deficiency
Gout
Hyperparathyroidism
Multiple endocrine neoplasia or Von Hippel-Lindau syndrome
Hypercalciuria
Renal tubular acidosis
Inflammatory bowel disease
Having had bowel resection or gastric bypass surgery

You may have certain tests to diagnose kidney stones:

CT scan of the abdomen and pelvis. During this exam, you will move through an X-ray tube. You will not need dye or “contrast.” Usually, this exam uses a low dose of radiation unless your physician wants to look for something besides kidney stones.
Lab tests. If you have passed kidney stones, your care team can study them to find their chemical makeup. Your care team may also use a blood test to check your kidney function.
Kidney or bladder ultrasound. This test uses high-frequency sound waves to make an image of your kidneys or bladder.
Urinalysis. Looking at your urine under a microscope can help your care team find an infection or blood.
Complete metabolic evaluation and 24-hour urine study. This study can help your care team see if you have a future risk of forming kidney stones.
- First, your care team will do a blood test to check levels of certain substances, such as body pH, calcium, uric acid, phosphorous, sodium and potassium.
- Second, you will collect your urine for a 24-hour period. Your care team will then study the different components. This lets your physician create a plan for you to help prevent kidney stones.
Vitamin D and parathyroid hormone testing. Your care team may order these tests if your blood work is abnormal.