EVALUATION OF POSSIBLE TISSUE-DAMAGE IN PATIENTS UNDERGOING EXTRACORPOREAL SHOCK-WAVE LITHOTRIPSY EMPLOYING C-REACTIVE PROTEIN

Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) has become the most commo n treatment for stones in the upper urinary tract. Tissue injury relat ed to ESWL has been documented. C-reactive protein (CRP) is the classi cal acute-phase protein most recognized as an early marker in diseases characterized by inflammation and tissue injury. Possible tissue trau ma by ESWL was evaluated by serial CRP determinations in 150 patients with kidney stones, whose follow-up was uneventful. The mean CRP-conce ntration prior to ESWL was 6.34 mg/l. The majority of patients did not show any further elevation of CRP-levels. Mean CRP-levels were 7.62 m g/l on the first, 6.12 mg/l on the third and 5.09 mg/l on the fifth da y after ESWL. No correlation was observed between the number of shock waves and CRP levels. Judged by CRP-determinations tissue damage induc ed by ESWL can be considered to be minimal as no marked CRP-elevations could be observed in patients with an uneventful follow-up after ESWL .