[Extracorporeal lithotripsy in the treatment of renal colic]

Renal colic arises in acute ureteral obstruction and indicates a sharp rise in intrapelvic pressure (up to 150 mm Hg). The diagnosis of renal colic is made basing on direct and indirect measurements of intrapelvic pressure. Ultrasound in renal colic detects dilatation of the calices and pelvis on the colic side, ureterolith can be also revealed by ultrasound. The authors used extracorporeal lithotripsy for fragmentation of the stone and colic relief in 68 patients. The colic stopped in all the cases. This method is extremely valuable in cases when spasmolytic and analgetic drugs, other conservative modalities fail.