External physical vibration lithecbole facilitating the expulsion of upper ureteric stones 1.0-2.0 cm after extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy: a prospective randomized trial

To observe the efficacy and safety of External Physical Vibration Lithecbole (EPVL) in patients with upper ureteric stones 1.0-2.0 cm after extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL). A total of 271 patients with upper ureteric stones 1.0-2.0 cm were prospectively randomized into two groups. One hundred and twenty-seven cases in the treatment group accepted EPVL therapy and 144 cases as control after ESWL. The stone expulsion status and stone-free rates (SFRs) between two groups were compared at the 1st, 2nd and 4th weekends by imaging examinations. All of 271 patients were randomly assigned to two groups, of which 127 patients were included in the treatment group and 144 in the control group. EPVL was successful in assisting the discharge of stone fragments. The rate of stone expulsion at day 1 in the treatment group was significantly higher than in the control group (79.5% vs. 64.6%, P=0.006). The SFRs of the 1st weekend (76.3% vs. 61.8%, P=0.010), the 2nd weekend (88.2% vs. 77.1%, P=0.017) and the 4th weekend (92.1% vs. 84.0%, P=0.042) in the treatment group were all significantly higher than that in the control group. However, no statistical significance was found in complications between the two groups (P>0.05). Furthermore, in the treatment group the patients were treated a mean 4.3 sessions of EPVL. EPVL and ESWL are ideal complementary partners in the treatment of upper ureteric stones 1.0-2.0 cm, satisfying both high SFR and low complication. This method is safe and reproducible in clinical practice, and it also needs large-scale multicenter prospective studies further to prove the above conclusions.