Semirigid Ureteroscopy in Management of Large Proximal Ureteral Calculi: Is There Still a Role in Developing Countries?

Evaluation of pneumatic versus holmium:YAG laser lithotripsy for impacted ureteral stones

“…However, after introduction of laser lithotripters and small caliber flexible ureteroscopes, the usage of semi-rigid ureteroscope for upper ureteral stones has been controversial. There are some authors advocating the usage of semi-rigid ureteroscope in the absence of flexible instruments [8,9]. Another important point is that flexible instruments not only require advance experience when they are used in the ureter but also these instruments are more expensive than rigid ones.…”

“…Ureteroscopic intracorporeal lithotripsy has now become the first-line therapy for chronically impacted stones [7]. Although flexible ureteroscopy is associated with improved access to the proximal ureter and superior stone-free rates, there are many papers advocating that semirigid ureteroscope is safe and successful treatment modality even for proximal ureteral stones [8,9].…”

Semi-Rigid Ureteroscopy for Proximal Ureteral Stones: Does Adjunctive Tamsulosin Therapy Increase the Chance of Success?

“…Currently, in the era of miniature scopes and their sophisticated accessories, semi-rigid URS has been applied in selected cases of proximal ureteral stones, either as a primary or as a salvage therapy for residual stones after extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy (SWL), with a reasonable overall success rate [4,5] . In fact, advancing a semi-rigid ureteroscope into the non-dilated ureter is difficult and carries the risk of inevitable complications, which may lead to the failure of the procedure.…”

Semirigid Laser Ureterolithotripsy for Single Large Renal Pelvic Stones

“…Success rate was higher in the females compared to that in the males (100 vs. 71.4%) and this difference reached statistical significance (p<0.05). It has been reported that the ureter in the female is less fixed and has a lower degree of curvature at the level of the iliac vessel bifurcation [12]. In addition, the male urethra requires a greater degree of torque during instrument insertion [13].…”