Kidney, Ureter & Bladder Stones can cause excruciating pain and distress. While small stones may pass naturally through urination, larger stones often require intervention. Laser kidney stone removal has emerged as a preferred minimally invasive treatment option for eliminating stones of all sizes.

Holmium laser lithotripsy is a procedure that uses a laser to break up stones in your urinary tract. This includes your bladder, kidneys, ureters (tubes that carry pee from your kidneys to your bladder) and urethra (the tube that your pee goes through to leave your body).

Holmium laser lithotripsy is often performed by a urologist during a ureteroscopy. They’ll insert a flexible laser fiber through a scope (a long tube with a camera on it) into your urinary tract to break up stones. They’ll remove the stone fragments with a small basket or other instruments. Providers don’t need to make any incisions (cuts in your skin) to perform this type of surgery.

Sometimes, lasers are also used to break up stones that a provider removes during a percutaneous nephrolithotomy, a procedure that remove kidney stones through an incision in your back.

Benefits of Holmium laser lithotripsy

• - High success rates – Over 90% success for first-time treatment
• - Can treat all stone types – Calcium oxalate, uric acid, cystine, struvite, etc.
• - Low risk of injury to surrounding tissue
• - No cuts/incisions hence minimal pain and discomfort
• - Quick recovery with most patients resuming normal activities in 1-2 days
• - Very little downtime or impact on daily life
• - Covered by medical insurance as an outpatient procedure