Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy and its effect on renal function.

Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy has become a major treatment modality for symptomatic upper tract renal stone disease. Although proved to be effective in disintegrating stones the short-term and long-term effects on renal function are not yet known. We evaluated several basic physiological parameters, namely creatinine clearance, fractional sodium excretion, protein excretion and urine osmolality before and after extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy in 26 consecutive patients in an attempt to quantitate changes in renal function. In addition, a 3 to 6-month followup study of patients showing excessive protein excretion with extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy also is reported. Our data suggest that with extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy transient nephrotic range proteinuria occurs immediately after treatment, returning to normal values within 3 to 6 months after treatment without a change in the glomerular filtration rate. The glomerular filtration rate increases after successful extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy in patients with kidneys obstructed by the treated stone before the start of the procedure, and the kidney appears to maintain its ability to dilute urine and to conserve sodium after treatment.