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Extracorporeal Lithotripsy or ESWL - Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotripsy is a modern medical method for treatment of kidney stones or ureter stones (the channel between the kidney and the bladder) and it breaks stones using generated machine outside the body through generated shock waves. After being treated by ESWL - fragments of the stones are naturally ejected from the body with the urine for different periods of time. The procedure is done with anesthesia or, very rarely, under full anesthesia.

The procedure starts with locating the stone with X-rays or ultrasound, then with generated shock waves with a certain frequency and increasing strength which disintegrate the stone.

The procedure usually lasts about an hour, the number of the shock waves is most frequently between 2000 and 4000. During the procedure one may feel discomfort in the kidney to various degrees of pain.

There are some other operational  methods of treatment for kidney stones and ureteral stones, which comprise ureteroscopy (URS), percutaneous nefrolitotomia (PCNL), retrograde intrarenal surgery (RIRS), combined endoscopic surgery intrarenal (ECIRS), open surgery.

The indications for the performance of the different operational treatments are determined by the size, location and the chemical composition of the stone as well as some other factors. Before conducting the extracorporeal lithotripsy the patient is being hospitalised one day before the surgery.