ABSTRACT
In the past decade, the field of urology has been one of the most rapidly progressing in applied technological advancements at the level of both medical diagnostics and treatment. The introduction of modern robotic laparoscopy has changed the face of minimally invasive surgery. For endourology specialists, stone surgery continues to be in the forefront of daily practice and innovations and new technologies are constantly being developed, aiming towards ever higher stone free rates and earlier recovery for the patient. But, is there a price? Indeed, in addition to advances in conservative treatment and prevention, modern endourology and stone disease management in particular enjoys a large variety of sophisticated new equipment and disposables, used either alone or in combination, developed from various companies at considerable cost. It is more than often that even expert professionals are not totally familiar with the whole range of treatment options and devices that are available in the market, as they commonly bear different names despite being used for the same purpose. Furthermore, a question of integrity might arise when using newly developed equipment directly in the operating theatre, with respect to the efficacy of the device as well as the learning curve required by the operator. In this review, we shall outline the latest advances in interventional lithotripsy technology and also demonstrate the most effective ways to use each particular modality efficiently and safely, with respect to the latest published guidelines and evidence-based recommendations.
