[Clinical experience of extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy for elderly patients with upper urinary stones]

This study was aimed to evaluate the usefulness and feasibility of extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) performed in elderly patients. ESWL by Triptor X-1 was used to treat 530 patients with upper urinary tract stones from 1991 to 1998. Sixty one (11.5%) of them were aged 70 years and older. The results of ESWL treatment in this elderly group were compared retrospectively with those in 122 patients aged from 20 to 39 and 243 patients aged from 40 to 59. Although the elderly had a higher incidence of preoperative risk factors, the postoperative complication rates were similar among all groups. The stone-free rate and the success rate at one month in the elderly group were 67.2% and 92.5%, respectively, which were similar to those in the younger groups. These results suggested that ESWL offered a safe and effective means of treating upper urinary tract stones in elderly patients.