Glucagon, ureteral colic and ureteral peristalsis

Experimentally, glucagon is an effective ureteral relaxant that induces a moderate diuresis. Our data suggest that in specified cases of ureteral colic, before the development of a ureteral bar, flaccid dilatation of the pelvis and renal shutdown, glucagon may facilitate the expulsion of small ureteral calculi. When the ureteral pain is due to hyperperistalsis the drug has promise in the alleviation of pain. The complexities of the pathophysiology of ureteral colic in an experimental model support the treatment of ureteral edema in colic with anti-inflammatory drugs but suggest certain precautions in the design of any investigation of drug therapy for colic, lest a good drug be found ineffective for the wrong reason-that it was used in an impossible situation.