Misleading abdominal pain following extracorporeal renal lithotripsy.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: Extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy (ESWL) is a useful technique for the treatment of kidney and urinary tract stones but appears also to cause some extrarenal complications. CASE PRESENTATION We report the case of a 33-year-old Caucasian man with a history of Crohn's disease who presented septic shock due to a jejunum perforation 6 h following an ESWL for a right ureteral stone. The perforation, which occurred at the exact site of a previous surgical anastomosis, was revealed on a CT scan which found an unusual aspect probably due to cavitation and bubbles formation induced by ESWL. CONCLUSION: This case emphasizes the particular aspect of CT scan and the extrarenal potential danger of the ESWL procedure. Some precautions and dedicated patient information must be taken when used in patients with chronic inflammation of the digestive tract or history of intestinal surgery.