Dr. Chew and Dr. Bhojani discuss the LithoVue Elite System for ureteroscopy

The FDA recently granted 510(k) clearance to the LithoVue Elite System for ureteroscopy. In this video, Ben H. Chew, MD, MSc, FRCSC, and Naeem Bhojani, MD, FRCSC, discuss the mechanics of the device and the importance of it for kidney stone procedures. Chew is a urologist at the University of British Columbia and Bhojani is an associate professor of urology at the University of Montreal.

Video Transcript:

Dr. Chew: Really, it's the second generation of the first widely used single use ureteroscope, made by Boston Scientific, it was just the LithoVue. This is called the LithoVue Elite. So, it has some differences to it. It's single-use, meant for 1 use, essentially. That's all the advantages of basically having a new scope every time with excellent deflection, so you're worried about having to repair it, losing deflection over time, like we do with our reusable scopes, and of course, it's sterile every time. This does have some advantages in terms of looking at trying to avoid having to get re-sterilization departments, all those costs, chemicals for that, these types of things. I'll let Naeem talk about the actual different parts about what is special for the scope. I should mention that the chip on the tip is different from the original one. It has a higher resolution, which has a better visualization. If you put them side by side, this is obviously an improvement, as we would expect from a second generation. I'll let Naeem talk about what the pièce de resistance about what this ureteroscope is.

Dr. Bhojani: Yeah, thanks, Ben. I think this is a really exciting time. Really excited for FDA approval. Ben and I have had the opportunity to work on the scope and test it out for the last couple of years, some bench testing. So, we know a lot about the scope. As Ben mentioned, it has better resolution than the older version and has a better field of view; the imaging is really exceptional. I think the key here, as Ben mentioned, is that this new scope is able to measure intrarenal pressures as you're operating. It's really the first time that we have an instrument that can do this. This has the opportunity to really revolutionize the way we treat kidney stone disease via ureteroscopy.

This transcript was edited for clarity.