Yale University and the Stone Research Team, which is a multidisciplinary collaboration between urology, emergency medicine, biostatistics, and radiology, has been leading the way in reducing radiation exposure for patients presenting with kidney stones. Such patients are exactly the patients at most risk for cumulative radiation exposure since they are more prone to recurrent stones and pain and thus subjected to more imaging. This radiation dosing has risks for the development of secondary cancers. In fact it is estimated that 29,000 patients in the United States will acquire a secondary cancer as a result of CT scan induced radiation exposure. Expressed in another way, for every 500 – 1400 CT scans done for kidney stones, one patient will develop a secondary cancer. We are testing the use of an Ultra Low Dose CT scan which is approximately 87% less radiation than the standard CT scans that are done for patients with kidney stones.
We have also developed a multidisciplinary team to work with patients to reduce future kidney stones. This team consists of urology, nephrology and dietary experts. Once someone has formed a kidney stone, their risks of getting another one within 10 years is 50%. That is too high. We are dedicated to working with patients to lower that percentage chance to as low a number as possible. This is a new program at Yale and is the core of the Yale Stone Clinic.