RESUMO
PURPOSE: In the era of shock wave lithotripsy(SWL), most of the urinary stones are treated with SWL. But, there are some controversies in being SWL always the optimal treatment method for urinary stones, especially for lower urinary stones. To determine what is the most optimal initial treatment method for the lower urinary tract stones, we compared the results of SWL and laser lithotripsy in several aspects. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We compared retrospectively the success(stone free) rate, prevalence day, number of treatment sessions, cost between two groups, SWL and Laser lithotripsy. There were 42 men and 18 women in SWL group(total 60), and 47 men and 20 women in Laser lithotripsy group(total 67). RESULTS: The result were obtained as followings; The success rate were 83.3% in ESWL group during the follow up period, 94.0% in Laser lithotripsy group. The average prevalance days were 20.55 days in ESWL group, 5.5 days in Laser lithotripsy group. The average number of treatment session were 1.37 in ESWL group, 1 in Laser lithotripsy group. The average cost for the treatment of stone were 597,117 won in ESWL group, 652,887 Won in Laser lithotripsy group. CONCLUSIONS: For the lower urinary tract stones, laser lithotripsy got higher success rate in a shorter period with a single treatment session and is more effective for bladder and urethral stones.