"The Stone Evil," as Hippocrates called them, represented a great challenge for surgeons of all times - and from diverse cultures - who tried to heal the patient according to their technical and scientific possibilities.

In ancient times, the way to extract the stones was through the operation of the "Perineal Size"; which consisted of making an incision in the perineum or in the patient's belly. The lack of development in aseptic and anesthesia techniques made this operation a delicate procedure.

Half of the patients survived and everyone who could took the risk, hoping to be among those saved, and avoid dying of stones.

Lithotome

Caliper to extract lithos

Dr. Jean Ciavile was a French surgeon and urologist who in 1832 invented lithotripsy and managed to perfect an instrument that consisted of a very thin probe, with a transmitter rod, a screw to adjust it and a clamp with three teeth. The probe was inserted into the bladder and then, by the action of the rod and the screw, it opened to collect the stone. If this was too hard to break with the teeth of the clamp, then it could be shredded with the help of the edge of a small hole applied by the probe.

In the last two centuries, the technique and procedures for the extraction of the lithos were improved, highlighting the contribution of Henry J. Bigelow (1818-1890), an American doctor, who in 1872 introduced the lithopapaxia, which in addition to destroying the bladder stone Inside the bladder, add washing and removal of the fragments with an evacuator, applying anesthesia to your patients.

Urethral dilator beads

Lithotripter

In the last two centuries the technique and procedures for the extraction of the lithos were improved, by the hand of modern techniques in anesthesia and asepsis.