What is Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotripsy or ESWL?
Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy is a method for treating kidney stones and ureter. It does not need any cuts or incisions. Just some high-energy shock waves are passed through the body and it fragments the kidney stones into small grains. Due to their small dimension, these stones can pass from the body along with the urine. This is quite a popular treatment procedure for kidney stones.
How ESWL Procedure for Kidney Stones is performed?
First of all, the patient is anesthetized so that the procedure can be performed without any hassle. The patient rests on top of a soft pillow where the waves can pass easily through the kidney. An electronic x-ray is used to identify the exact place of the kidney stones. Now the shock wave beam is focused on the stone area. Thousands of shock waves are needed to break the stones into dust like granules. The full treatment takes about 45 to 60 mins. The patient is then sent to the recovery room.
Aftercare After ESWL for Kidney Stones
After ESWL, stone pieces normally pass in the urine for a few days, so you may feel a slight discomfort while urinating.
Most patients resume everyday activities within one to 2 days after the procedure.
No specific or Unique diets are required. You are requested to drink a lot of water to assist the stone fragments to pass easily.
What are some difficulties or side effects of ESWL?
A lot of patients have some blood in the urine for a few days. You may have painful urination for quite a while. Sometimes, the stone is not totally smashed, and added treatments might be needed, but that’s quite rare.
Who is eligible for Lithotripsy ESWL for Kidney stones?
The dimension, number, and location of kidney stones decide the perfect treatment option for their removal. Stones that are less than 2 cm in size are most likely to be treated with ESWL.
Those Patients who are pregnant, have a blockage in the urethra, or have kidney disease are not eligible for ESWL.
You can book an appointment with Dr Atul Jain here for the best ESWL treatment for kidney stones.