Abstract
Extracorporeal Shockwave lithotripsy (ESWL) is today the chosen therapy for renal calculi, and the great number of patients treated all over the world has confirmed the reliability of this technique, whose complications are rare and of slight clinical relevance. For this reason, ESWL has also become the main therapy of lithiasis in solitary kidneys, notwithstanding the fact that the particular anatomofunctional situation of these patients exposes them to the serious risk of excretory anuria if, after ESWL, the fragments are passed too quickly, causing obstruction of the excretory tract. Different maneuvers may be necessary before or after ESWL in order to prevent this complication. We review our experience in 53 patients with solitary kidneys affected by more or less complex renoureteral lithiasis who have been treated with the Dornier Lithotripter with a 94% success rate at 3 months.
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