The treatment of lower pole renal calculi in 2003.

The optimal treatment of patients with lower pole renal calculi is still being defined. Shock wave lithotripsy, percutaneous nephrolithotomy, and ureteroscopy are all currently utilized to treat patients with this condition. These methods have yielded varying degrees of success. The influence of collecting system anatomy on shock wave lithotripsy results remains controversial. Ongoing randomized, prospective trials evaluating the efficacy of all of these respective therapeutic options will, it is hoped, determine the best approaches for this patient cohort.