Alternative Pathologies on Unenhanced Helical CT Scan in Patients Presenting With Flank Pain

摘要

This article reviews the alternative pathologies seen in patients presenting to the emergency room with flank pain. The most common clinically suspected cause of flank pain is urinary tract calculi, for which nonenhanced helical CT has become the primary imaging modality. However, CT also can aid in uncovering a variety of clinically unsuspected disorders involving the intraperitoneal, retroperitoneal, and pelvic compartments that can present as flank pain. Therefore, nonenhanced helical CT performed for urinary tract stone localization should be read with great care, keeping in mind the alternative pathologies causing acute flank pain, and contrast-enhanced CT should be performed if the findings are subtle or indeterminate.