Kidney stones are notoriously painful, often requiring surgery or months of slow dissolution via oral medication. However, researchers at the University of Waterloo in Canada are developing a groundbreaking, minimally invasive technique that could change the future of kidney stone treatment: magnetic microrobots guided by a robotic arm.
This innovative system uses soft, flexible strips—mere centimeters long—that are loaded with urease, an enzyme, and equipped with a micro-magnet. These miniature robots are designed to be sent into the urinary tract. A physician then uses an external robotic arm to precisely guide the micro-robots to the location of the uric acid stone using real-time ultrasound imaging.
Once positioned, the urease enzyme gets to work, reducing the acidity (increasing the pH) of the surrounding urine. This local reaction dissolves the stone until it is small enough to pass naturally, typically within days, offering significantly faster relief than current oral medication.
This magnetic microrobot approach is especially promising for patients who cannot tolerate oral dissolving medications or who are at risk for surgery due to chronic infections or other factors. By providing targeted, localized treatment, the technology aims to circumvent the need for invasive procedures and prolonged drug therapy.
The technology is currently being tested on 3D-printed urinary tract models. The next steps for the research team include studies in large animals and further refinement of the real-time ultrasound-guided robotic system before moving to human trials. This development represents a major leap forward, potentially offering millions of "stone formers" a quicker, less painful, and less invasive path to recovery.
