[Treatment of ureteral lithiasis in situ with an EDAP LT01 lithotriptor]

Herein we present the results of 237 ureteral calculi that had been treated, without previous manipulation, with piezoelectric extracorporeal lithotripsy (PEL) using the EDAP LT01 lithotriptor. The lumbar ureter was divided into UP1 and UP2, the segments above or below the inferior border of the kidney, respectively. Forty-seven calculi were located in UP1 and 19 in UP2. The pelvic segment of the ureter was divided into UD1 and UD2, the segment above the sciatic notch and the remaining portion of the pelvic ureter, respectively. Fifty-seven calculi were located in UD1 and 114 in UD2. Treatment was performed in 246 sessions. Localization of the calculi was achieved without difficulty in 56.9%, with difficulty in 35.3% and this could not be achieved in 7.7%. Localization became more difficult as we moved further away from the kidney and urinary bladder. The overall success rate was 83.5%. No correlation was observed between stone size and success. Most of the calculi (62%) were 6 to 10 mm in size. The incidence of satisfactory resolution of calculi increased with the operator's experience. PEL is an effective alternative in the treatment of ureteral calculi in situ. In our setting, it is our first approach in the management of calculi, fundamentally in those cases without a markedly obstructive component.