Densely calcified gallstone treated successfully with piezoelectric lithotripsy.
A patient with biliary pain and a densely calcified gallbladder stone was treated successfully with piezoelectric extracorporeal shock-wave lithotripsy. The gallstone was fragmented to particles of less than 1-2 mm in diameter in a single 1-h session. The procedure was performed in the outpatient setting and required no anesthesia or analgesia. Follow-up sonograms showed that clearance of residual fragments from the gallbladder had occurred within 1 wk. Our encouraging treatment result suggests the need for future research to be directed towards broadening the currently recommended criteria for biliary lithotripsy, which currently exclude treatment of densely calcified gallstones.
Department of Medicine, George Washington University Medical Center, Washington, D.C.
M B
MB
ALbert
H
H
Fromm
C M
CM
Shehan
D001660:Biliary Tract Diseases / Q000628:therapy; D002114:Calcinosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D002765:Cholecystography; D002769:Cholelithiasis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D003085:Colic / Q000628:therapy; D005704:Gallbladder / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D008096:Lithotripsy / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012008:Recurrence; D014463:Ultrasonography