ABSTRACT
Objective:To explore the safety and efficacy of pancreatic extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (P-ESWL) in treating painful chronic pancreatitis patients with pancreatic stones.Methods:The painful chronic pancreatitis patients receiving P-ESWL alone or P-ESWL combined with ERCP at Shanghai Pudong New Area Gongli Hospital from August 2019 to December 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. The success rate of stone fragmentation following P-ESWL, occurrence of postoperative complications, stone clearance rate of the main pancreatic duct and degree of pain relief in the follow-up were evaluated.Results:Among 113 patients, 7 patients were treated with P-ESWL alone and 106 patients were treated by P-ESWL combined with ERCP. The success rate of stone fragmentation was 98.2%. The occurrence of P-ESWL complications was 6.2%. Complete clearance of the main pancreatic duct stones was achieved in 75.2% of patients. With the mean follow-up of 17.5(3-31) months, complete pain relief was achieved in 84.1% of patients. The pain frequency and VAS score of patients treated with P-ESWL alone and P-ESWL combined with ERCP were obviously lower than those before treatment, and the body weight and body mass index were significantly higher than those before treatment, all with statistically significant differences (all P value <0.01). Conclusions:P-ESWL is safe and effective for the management of painful chronic pancreatitis patients with main pancreatic duct stones.