TY - JOUR
T1 - Thulium fiber laser utilization in urological surgery
T2 - A narrative review
AU - Khusid, Johnathan A.
AU - Khargi, Raymond
AU - Seiden, Benjamin
AU - Sadiq, Areeba S.
AU - Atallah, William M.
AU - Gupta, Mantu
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Korean Urological Association.
PY - 2021/3
Y1 - 2021/3
N2 - The thulium fiber laser (TFL) is a novel technology under active investigation as an conceivable alternative to the Holmium:yttrium-aluminum-garnet (Ho:YAG) laser, which is currently the gold standard for an array of urologic procedures. The purpose of this review is to discuss the existing literature on the functionality and effectiveness of TFL in urological practice. We conducted a search of the PubMed, Medline, Web of Science Core Collection, SCOPUS, Embase (OVID), and Cochrane Databases for all full articles and systematic reviews on the TFL. We found a total of 35 relevant pieces of literature. The early research findings pertaining to the TFL exhibit numerous potential advantages over the Ho:YAG laser. In vitro and ex vivo studies have highlighted the TFL’s ability to utilize smaller laser fibers, obtain faster stone ablation rates, and achieve less retropulsion when tested against the Ho:YAG laser in lithotripsy. Currently, there is limited in vivo research that investigates the utilization of the TFL. The in vivo results that are avail-able, however, look promising both for laser lithotripsy and soft tissue ablation. Indeed, the existing literature suggests that the TFL has great potential and may possess numerous technological advantages over the Ho:YAG laser, especially in laser lithotripsy. Al-though these early studies are promising, randomized control trials are needed to assess the full applicability of the TFL in urology.
AB - The thulium fiber laser (TFL) is a novel technology under active investigation as an conceivable alternative to the Holmium:yttrium-aluminum-garnet (Ho:YAG) laser, which is currently the gold standard for an array of urologic procedures. The purpose of this review is to discuss the existing literature on the functionality and effectiveness of TFL in urological practice. We conducted a search of the PubMed, Medline, Web of Science Core Collection, SCOPUS, Embase (OVID), and Cochrane Databases for all full articles and systematic reviews on the TFL. We found a total of 35 relevant pieces of literature. The early research findings pertaining to the TFL exhibit numerous potential advantages over the Ho:YAG laser. In vitro and ex vivo studies have highlighted the TFL’s ability to utilize smaller laser fibers, obtain faster stone ablation rates, and achieve less retropulsion when tested against the Ho:YAG laser in lithotripsy. Currently, there is limited in vivo research that investigates the utilization of the TFL. The in vivo results that are avail-able, however, look promising both for laser lithotripsy and soft tissue ablation. Indeed, the existing literature suggests that the TFL has great potential and may possess numerous technological advantages over the Ho:YAG laser, especially in laser lithotripsy. Al-though these early studies are promising, randomized control trials are needed to assess the full applicability of the TFL in urology.
KW - Laser therapy
KW - Lithotripsy
KW - Surgical endoscopy
KW - Thulium
KW - Urology
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85102482127&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.4111/icu.20200467
DO - 10.4111/icu.20200467
M3 - Review article
C2 - 33660440
AN - SCOPUS:85102482127
SN - 2466-0493
VL - 62
SP - 136
EP - 147
JO - Investigative and Clinical Urology
JF - Investigative and Clinical Urology
IS - 2
ER -