• Feinberg School
• Northwestern
• Feinberg Faculty Profiles

Stone Disease
 

Faculty

• Robert B. Nadler, MD - Director
• Christopher M. Gonzalez, MD, MBA
• Kevin T. McVary, MD
• Kent T. Perry, MD

The Department of Urology is dedicated to the thorough evaluation and minimally invasive treatment of stones, tumors, and congenital anomalies of the kidney, ureter, and bladder. The latest minimally invasive techniques are used to treat stones in the upper and lower urinary tract; these techniques include extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) using two state of the art lithotripters. Most stones are treated as in an outpatient procedure under IV sedation on the lithotripter at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Larger stones are treated with percutaneous nephrolithotomy, a surgical procedure that uses one or two small incisions of one inch or less. These incisions are made in the back to allow the insertion of small telescopes, lasers, and other instruments to fragment and remove the stones. Stones in the ureter are treated either with ESWL or with small flexible telescopes (ureteroscopes) and lasers to fragment and remove the stones.

The Department of Urology is dedicated not only to the treatment of stones, but most importantly to the prevention and medical management of stones. 24-hour urine analysis and blood tests are performed to determine the etiology of each patient's individual stone, and a treatment regimen involving both diet and medication is designed for each patient. This information is then conveyed to the patient's treating urologist to prevent stone recurrence.

Endourology is the minimally invasive discipline in which small telescopes and lasers are used to treat tumors, strictures, or congenital anomalies of the bladder, ureter, and kidney. Members of the Department of Urology are actively pursuing the etiology and treatment of transitional cell cancer of the upper urinary tract, scar tissue formation (strictures), and the treatment of ureter pelvic junction obstruction. Under the direction of Dr. Robert B. Nadler, clinical trials on the optimal treatment for UPJ obstructions using the Acusize cutting balloon, holmium laser, or the technique of antegrade endopyelotomy are ongoing. A similar study for ureteral strictures and a long-term analysis of patients with small upper tract transitional cell cancer treated endoscopically are also underway.