Evidence
Published stone-free rates are highly sensitive to imaging protocol, surgeon experience, stone position, and whether "stone-free" means no fragments at all or only clinically relevant residual fragments. This page highlights themes that appear on the Urology NSW kidney stone page.
Meta-analyses have shown higher stone-free rates with flexible ureteroscopy than with ESWL for stones in the 1 to 2 cm range. For stones smaller than about 1 cm, the two modalities can perform more similarly, while ESWL retains advantages in procedure length and anaesthesia exposure for suitable patients.
The MUSIC ROCKS registry, cited on the Urology NSW kidney stone page, reported complete stone-free rates on post-operative imaging of 49.6 per cent for renal stones and 72.7 per cent for ureteric stones across a large multi-surgeon cohort, with wide surgeon-level variation for renal stones. Those figures illustrate why a single headline percentage rarely describes an individual patient.
AUA (2026) and EAU (2025) statements frame first-line choices by stone size, location, density, and anatomy. Your urologist maps those statements to your CT scan and preferences.
Device-level pulse formats such as Moses are designed to improve laser energy coupling. They do not remove the need for careful technique, appropriate patient selection, and discussion of risks such as ureteric injury that any endoscopic lithotripsy platform can carry.
The rooms can arrange a consultation to review imaging and outline which form of lithotripsy, if any, fits your situation.