What is Shock Wave Lithotripsy Treatment.

A lithotriptor machine in an operating room. Other equipment is seen in the background, including an anesthesia machine and a mobile fluoroscopic system (or "C-arm"). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

So you just found out you have a kidney stone and the doctor told you that you need to have a procedure called lithotripsy and you have already started to panic. Well first things first, stop breathe and read....

Lithotripsy refers to a medical procedure that uses shockwaves to break up kidney stones. The kidney stones then pass naturally in the urine or through a tube that is inserted into the kidney called a nephrostomy tube.

The sound waves used for lithotripsy pass from the outside of the body to the inside of the body , hence a better name for the procedure would be outside of the body shockwave lithotripsy. In medical jargon this translates to extracorporeal (outside the body) shockwave lithotripsy or ESWL.

On the day of the procedure you will lie on a water filled cushion. The water will conduct the sound waves to the skin and hence to the stone after being sedated, because there may be discomfort a painkiller is also administered prior to the procedure.

In some cases a tube will need to be inserted to allow the stones to pass out of the kidney. With good planning your doctor will place this before hand if necessary, however circumstances sometime dictates that this be placed after the procedure. The procedure takes generally 1 hour and you may feel unusual sensations in the area of the stone as it absorbs the sound wave energy.

Because this is a noninvasive procedure it is generally safe, however you should be aware that the stone may be too large to break up entirely in one treatment. If the stone shatters within the kidney with sufficient energy there may be bleeding. If the kidney is damaged by the stone as it breaks up it may lead to a permanent loss of kidney function in some cases. The stones may be broken up reducing them to a size where they may now move into the narrower ureters (see diagram above) and obstruct the flow of urine leading to pain which may require another procedure. The procedure is also associated with a small risk of ulceration of the stomach and small intestine.

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Your chances of having one of these complications is low, however to minimize the risk one should inform the doctor before the procedure if you are on any medication including herbs that could increase bleeding such as aspirin, and other pain killers, green tea or ginko biloba.

You should have an empty stomach for the procedure and will receive specific instructions from your physicians about when to stop eating and when you will be able to eat again.