High-frequency waves could fragment a stone more quickly than low-amplitude waves.
By Chen Ly.
A magnified stone is displayed through a scanning electron microscope.
Kevin MackenZie is the information officer of Aberdeen/SCIENCE photo library.
It could be possible to break up kidney stones in 10 minutes with the use of waves from theechocardiography.
When waste products in the blood collect in the kidneys, they form crystals. Some people pass these without any problems, but stones can cause abdominal pain if they get stuck in the ureter, a small tube that connects the kidneys to the bladder.
A stone can be treated with shock wave lithotripsy, which involves delivering high-amplitude, low-frequency ultrasound waves to a stone for up to an hour. The stone can be easily passed in the urine if this fragment is used. It is possible that larger stones will need surgery.
The University of Washington in Seattle has developed a less painful treatment called burst wave lithotripsy, which uses higher frequencies and a lower amplitude of waves.
BWL was performed on 19 people with 25 stones in its first human study. The volume of the stones varies from 12 millimetres to less than 2 millimetres. Most of the stones in SWL are fragmented to less than 4 millimetres. Smaller stones can be more painful than a 4-millimetre fragment.
It has the potential to be administered in awake patients without anaesthesia.
Michael Bailey is a team member at the University of Washington and he hopes to combine with BWL.
We break the stones when they come in and try to push them out so that they are clear of the kidneys when the person leaves the clinic.
The Journal of Urology is a journal.
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