[Extracorporeal shock-wave lithotripsy of a salivary stone]

Ultrasonography revealed a 12 mm concrement in the left parotid duct of a 67-year-old man with an acute exacerbation of a left-sided purulent parotitis. After the acute phase had subsided under antibiotic therapy it was not possible to remove the stone either by bougie or cutting into the duct close to the papilla. Piezoelectric shockwave lithotripsy with a total of 1000 shock-waves fragmented the stone, and sonography 48 hours and four weeks later demonstrated that the parotid gland was free of stone.