Prospective Trial of the Detection of Urolithiasis on Ultralow Dose (Sub mSv) Noncontrast Computerized Tomography: Direct Comparison against Routine Low Dose Reference Standard

Abstract

At a 4 mm renal calculus size threshold ultralow dose computerized tomography is accurate for detection when referenced against routine low dose series with dose reduction to below the level of a typical 2-view plain x-ray of the kidneys, ureters and bladder. Slight differences were seen among the reconstruction algorithms. There was mild improvement with model based iterative reconstruction over filtered back projection and adaptive statistical iterative reconstruction. Coronal images improved detection and diagnostic confidence over axial images alone.