North American first: New kidney stone procedure at St. Joseph’s Health Care enhancing treatment

Doctors at St. Joseph's are using a new treatment for kidney stones. The tech has never been used in North America before. CTV London’s Reta Ismail reports.

It’s a North American first, and it’s happening at St. Joseph’s Health Care in London, Ont.

World renowned urology surgeon Dr. John Denstedt showcased what he calls a “simple device” that he’s been using to revolutionize treatment for kidney stones.

It’s called a ureteral access tube, also know as a sheath, and has two major benefits.

“[The access tube] enhances the treatment by providing us with, I’ll call it ‘vacuuming.’ [It has the] ability to vacuum up the small particles. So, [we] start [vacuuming] after we treat them with a laser,” said Dr. Denstedt. “That will most likely decrease the chances of recurring kidney stones.”

Up until recently, the device was only used in China. St. Joseph’s Health Care London is the first hospital in North America to introduce this technology that shows great promise in enhancing kidney stone treatment outcomes.

Dr. Denstedt said the new treatment will benefit kidney stone patients globally.

“It’s a very minimally invasive procedure actually, patients are in and out the same day who don’t need to stay in the hospital, [they] can get back to work much sooner. So there is definitely multiple advantages to this technique,” explained Dr. Denstedt.

Dr. Denstedt said due to diet and lifestyle, research shows the prevalence of kidney stones is on the rise, with about 12 per cent of men and 10 per cent of women experiencing kidney stones.

“Most patients who have had a kidney stone will say it’s the most painful thing they’ve experienced in their lifetime. In addition to the pain, though, there can be other problems with infection in the urine causing bleeding from the urinary tract, as well it can affect the kidney functions,” explained Dr. Denstedt.

St. Joseph’s Hospital says about 600 patients undergo ureteroscopy and laser lithotripsy each year and Dr. Denstedt expects many of those individuals to be eligible for the new procedure as part of a clinical trial.