Calculi Research Paper

Calculi is commonly known as a kidney stone. The number one symptom accompanying a kidney stone is severe pain in the abdomen due to a build up of crystal-forming substances in the urinary system that are too large to pass. Harwood (1985) points out, two types of lithotripsy that can be used to shatter a kidney stone. The first is called percutaneous ultrasonic lithotripsy and is used for large calculi. PUL is an invasive procedure where a nephroscope is inserted through the abdomen into the area where the calculi is located and pulverized with sound waves. The second is extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy which is a non-invasive procedure used for smaller calculi. The patient is placed in water and shock waves are produced to shatter the
calculi. Both procedures deliver shock waves to break apart or shatter the calculi into smaller pieces to be excreted in urine out of the body. Depending on the size of Andrews calculi will determine which procedure will be used.