Percutaneous transhepatic electrohydraulic lithotripsy.

Calculi can be fragmented by hydraulic shock waves generated by an electrical discharge across the tip of a coaxial electrode. After testing a device by using this technique in the biliary trees of dogs, the authors fragmented a large common bile duct stone in a patient through a percutaneous transhepatic approach. The fragmentation allowed nonsurgical drainage of the obstructed duct.