Hadassah-Ein Kerem houses Israel’s largest Kidney Stone Treatment Center. In 1985, Hadassah was the first hospital in Israel – and one of the first hospitals worldwide – to acquire a lithotripter and practice its pioneering treatments. Since then, Hadassah has treated over 16,000 patients with outstanding success.
A lithotripter provides non-invasive treatment for kidney and bladder stones. It bombards them from outside the body with focused, high-intensity acoustic pulses, fragmenting them into sand-like particles that will pass out harmlessly in urine.
In the intervening years, the equipment and the functions it can perform have evolved considerably. Hadassah purchased a new, state-of-the-art lithotripter, the Dornier Gemini, the leading machine in the field. Its high degree of flexibility allows physicians to perform both endourology and lithotripsy with an outstanding degree of accuracy and less discomfort to patients. The Dornier Gemini’s advanced capabilities allow in-vitro crushing using shock waves, and the ability to focus the waves with a scan or Doppler ultrasound, making it suitable for people of all ages, including children.
To accommodate the new lithotripter and provide easy access for patients, Hadassah renovated the Unit of Endourology on the ground floor of the main building with comfortable treatment rooms, patient-doctor consultation rooms and a pleasant waiting area.
“In the past few years there has been substantial increase in the number of patients who come to Hadassah with stones in the urinary track,” said Dr. Mordechai Duvdevani, Director of Endourology and Lithotripsy in the Dept. of Urology. “Hadassah is considered the leading institution in Israel in endourology. Recently we have received global recognition of our expertise in this field.”