COMPARISON OF 2 PULSED LASERS FOR LITHOTRIPSY OF URETERAL CALCULI - REPORT ON 154 PATIENTS

Extracorporeal lithotripsy does not always provide satisfactory result s for the treatment of ureteral stones. Such cases appear to be excell ent indications for endocorporeal lithotripsy based on an association of ureteroscopy and laser. To compare the performances of 2 pulsed las ers, the pulsed dye laser (Candela) and solid Q switched laser (HMT), for the treatment of these calculi 161 ureteral stones were treated su ccessively from November 1990 to March 1992 by a combination of ureter oscopy and laser. Endocorporeal lithotripsy was performed in 102 cases with the Candela laser, in 47 with the HMT laser and in 7 with both l asers. With a stable success rate greater than 90%, both lasers demons trated equivalent performances regardless of the location of the stone along the ureter. However, while stone fragmentation was more rapid w ith the Candela laser, the HMT laser appeared to be more effective for dark stones (monohydrate calcium oxidate).