The first Lithotripter was produced by the German Aircraft manufacturer
Dornier. The first patient was treated in a prototype machine called HM1
(Human Model 1) in February 1980 in Munich, Germany. Dornier launched the
first commercially produced Lithotripter called HM 3 in 1984, which was
subsequently approved by FDA. The results electrified the urology community
worldwide, and many refused to believe them. The high-technological age
had its impact on urology and the "shock waves" from Munich literally shook
the entire urology community. This new technology was not a dream. It rapidly
assumed a dominant position in the therapy of renal calculi. The lay press
was suitably impressed by the Dornier Lithotripter HM-1 and the "Munich
Stonebuster" captured the imagination of suffering patients with renal
stones worldwide. In these models, the patient had to be lowered in a water
tank. The electrodes used to get worn out every 200-300 shocks and the
patient had to be taken out to change the electrode. Since then more than
4 million patients have been successfully treated worldwide with ESWL and
more than 15 different Lithotripters are available.
Detailed Information about Lithotripsy is available in the following pages.
