Urinary tract stones may form in the kidneys or along the ureteric tracts and when left
untreated, may result in complications such as pain, bleeding, infection and obstruction.
ESWL (extra-corporeal shock wave lithotripsy) has been shown to be an effective and safe
method of treatment for kidney and ureteric stones in-situ. In our centre, ESWL is done on an
outpatient basis with oral pain killers in the weeks following treatment. Patients are also
instructed to increase their fluid intake during this period to expedite the clearance of
stone fragments. There have been studies to show that pain caused by stones is due to smooth
muscle spasm along the ureters, possibly mediated by alpha-receptors. Alpha-blockers have
been shown to improve the expulsion of stones and also improve pain relief when used alone,
or together with ESWL treatment. In our study, we seek to investigate if alpha-blocker
therapy (Alfuzosin) increases stone free rates and improves pain control after ESWL for renal
and ureteric stones. The potential benefits include a higher rate of stone clearance and
better pain control