Up to now, extracorporeally generated shock waves have been exclusively used for the disintegration of urinary and biliary calculi, the target area being located with X-rays or with ultrasound. Application of shock waves onto tissue initially leads to short-term ischaemia and a second shock-wave application on the same tissue leads to fairly intensive, fairly long-lasting reduction of the blood flow. By coupling an intraluminally introduced ultrasonic probe (e.g. transrectal ultrasound) with a shock wave source, tissue or the blood vessels leading to these tissue structures can be irradiated in order to reduce the blood flow. The target volume can be exactly defined with the intraluminal ultrasonic probe, and the desired tissue can thus be subjected to the action of shock waves in a controlled and accurate manner.
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