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Intracorporeal lithotripsy is used to treat urolithiasis and involves the fragmentation and removal of calculi in the urinary tract
Intracorporeal lithotripsy is a procedure used to remove calculi from the urinary tract in the case of urolithiasis, often called kidney stone disease.
When determining the most effective course of therapy for kidney stones, factors that are considered include the size, location, and number of stones. If known, the composition of a stone may also play a role in determining appropriate treatment.
Not all urinary stones require surgical removal. Tiny, unobstructed calculi are typically treated with extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL). The stones are crushed into granules using electric shocks and the little bits are eventually flushed out when passing urine.
What is urolithiasis?
Urolithiasis can form in any section of the urinary tract, including the pelvicalyceal system of the kidney, bladder, ureter, and even the urethra in rare cases. The presence of symptoms is often brought on by an obstruction or an infection in the urinary system.
Bladder stones were once extremely common, especially in children, and was one of the few conditions that could be successfully treated by surgery before the advent of anesthesia and antisepsis. This is now much less common than ureteral and kidney stones.
How is urolithiasis treated?
The procedure for bladder stone removal via surgery is called lithotomy. It involves positioning the patient with both legs in stirrups and uses a perineal approach (area between the urethra and anus) to access the bladder. To detect the stone, a metal instrument called a bladder sound is inserted into the bladder via the urethra.
Certain kinds of stones are resistant to ESWL, such as cystine and calcium oxalate monohydrate stones. In these cases, alternative therapy is often necessary. Additionally, stones that are bigger (usually more than 2.5 cm) have a higher risk of breaking into larger fragments that are still capable of obstructing the kidney. Stones that are positioned in the bottom area of the kidney have a reduced likelihood of passing through the urinary tract. If ESWL is not the best method of therapy, then an endoscopic procedure is often the next line of action that must be taken.
The stones may vary from the rare staghorn calculus, which accounts for 7% of all stones and completely fills the pelvicalyceal system, to little stones that grow in the pelvicalyceal system and have the potential to move into the ureter and block it.
Ureteric colic is the term for the medical emergency that results from acute ureteral blockage because the patient experiences excruciating agony. Most stone diseases, however, do not cause any symptoms and may be diagnosed in an outpatient setting without pressing concerns.
What is endourology?
Endourology is a subspecialty of urology that deals with the closed manipulation of the urinary system. It is a kind of urological surgery. In recent years, it has expanded to include all minimally invasive surgical treatments pertaining to urology.
Endourology is an alternative to open surgery that involves inserting miniature endoscopes, cameras, and devices into the urinary system to execute the procedure.
