Effect of output voltage distribution on stone comminution efficiency during shockwave lithotripsy in renal or ureteropelvic junction stones: A preliminary study

Abstract

In this preliminary study, manipulation of the lithotripter output voltage distribution did not affect stone comminution efficiency for renal or UPJ stones. This finding should be confirmed by larger studies including more patients.

Comparison of treatment outcomes according to output voltage during shockwave lithotripsy for ureteral calculi: a prospective randomized multicenter study

“…Although their study was based on one-time voltage escalation but not gradual voltage escalation, it suggested that voltage escalation may be inferior to conventional fixed voltage. A previous study of Korean patients reported no significant difference in SFRs according to output voltage [13]. Although the reason for negative results in the two aforementioned studies [12,13] remains unclear, different study protocols, including voltage setting, shockwave numbers at low voltage, and frequency, may have contribute to conflicting results among the studies [7][8][9][10][11][12][13].…”

“…In vitro [7,8], animal [9], and two clinical trials [10,11] have shown better success rates using escalating voltage, compared to fixed voltage. In contrast, other randomized clinical trials showed no difference in treatment outcomes between fixed and escalating voltage [12,13]. The majority of subjects enrolled in the abovementioned studies were patients with renal calculi.…”