Although acute pain in the kidney area is a common symptom, diagnosis of kidney stones can only be confirmed from the observation of an actual stone, which may be detected after passing through the urinary tract, with imaging tests, or during surgery.
When kidney stones are suspected, a physician will first obtain a detailed medical history and perform a physical exam. Imaging tests such as ultrasound or computerized tomography (CT) may be used to examine the urinary tract for the presence of stones.[1][2] X-ray imaging may also be used, but is more often used in follow-up care,[3] due to its more limited ability to detect smaller stones.[4]