The Zeiss-loop stone extraction: minimal invasive and effective or obsolete?

Purpose Through the introduction of ureterorenoscopy (URS) and extracorporal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) into stone treatment, the Zeiss-loop procedure has lost more and more its importance. Current guidelines recommend on the level of an expert-opinion, that stone extraction without endoscopic-visual control should not be performed anymore. Nevertheless, stone extraction using the Zeiss-loop is still being performed in our clinic and therefore we wanted to determine its position in stone treatment in the age of URS and ESWL.