ESWL (Shock Wave Lithotripsy) cost in South Korea (2026)
ESWL (Shock Wave Lithotripsy) in South Korea costs $1,950 to $5,600. That is the range across 8 hospital prices in our database; the typical price is $3,650. Your exact price depends on the hospital, room and implant.
- 7 days to full recovery
- 8 hospital prices
- 5 days visa processing
- 80% reported success rate
Reviewed by MedCasts editorial desk · May 5, 2026
Prices are hospital price ranges from our database, not a final quote. How we check
Estimate your total cost
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Hospital package = typical price range from 8 hospital prices.
Room and implant choices use rough adjustments (est.). Meals at about $15 per person per day. Flights not included.
Get 3 real quotes for this estimateCost breakdown: what changes the price
Based on 8 hospital prices in South Korea.
Best hospitals for ESWL (Shock Wave Lithotripsy) in South Korea
How we rankRanked by accreditation, patient rating and review count, then price.
-
1 Asan Medical CenterSeoul · ISO 9001 · JCI · KOIHA · ★ 4.8From$2,350$2,350 – $5,880 21 doctors listed JCI accredited -
2 From$1,950$1,950 – $4,880 -
3 -
4 Gachon University Gil HospitalIncheonFrom$2,000$2,000 – $5,010 12 doctors listed -
5 From$2,080$2,080 – $5,210
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South Korea vs other countries
Typical hospital price per country, from 72 price records in the Medcasts database.
What a hospital quote usually includes
- Surgeon, anaesthesia and operating room
- Your hospital stay and nursing care
- Routine tests and medicines during the stay
- Free Medcasts coordinator, visa letter help and airport pickup arrangements
- Not included: flights and hotel after discharge
Every quote we send lists what is and isn't included, line by line.
Your recovery plan
- Day 0–Day 3Procedure day + same-week wound care; light activity from the day of discharge.
- Day 4–Day 7Return to most desk-based activity; finalise local follow-up appointment in your home country.
- Day 8–Day 14Most patients return to baseline. Strenuous activity per surgeon's individualised protocol.
Medical visa for South Korea
South Korea issues the C-3-3 Medical Treatment visa — 90 days, single or multiple entry, issued through Korean consulates or via designated medical-tourism facilitators (KTO-certified agencies). For oncology or complex surgery requiring >90 days, the G-1-10 category offers longer stays. One family attendant visa (C-3-3-1) per patient is standard.
- 1Choose your hospital from your quotes
- 2We help you get the hospital's invitation letter
- 3Apply with your passport, photo and the letter
- 4Fly. Your coordinator arranges airport pickup
Visa processing time by destination
We send the hospital invitation letter within 24 hours of your decision. Check your visa
About ESWL (Shock Wave Lithotripsy)
South Korea: Asan, Samsung — world leaders in renal cancer and robotic urology.
ESWL (Shock Wave Lithotripsy) is a minimally invasive urology procedure performed across our partner network at international price points ($1.1k–$13k). Cost varies by destination, surgeon volume, and inclusions. The decision to operate isn't taken on imaging alone — every program we coordinate with insists on a documented multidisciplinary discussion before scheduling.
ESWL (Shock Wave Lithotripsy) typically requires sedation anaesthesia, is done as a same-day case, and a 7-day recovery to normal daily activity. Reported technical-success rate at high-volume centres is around 80%.,Outcomes are far more sensitive to surgeon and program volume than to the specific implant brand, technique label, or country — the published outcome literature consistently shows that volume + perioperative pathway outweigh marketing differentiators.,Pricing varies by destination ($1.1k–$13k across our partner network), inclusions, and surgeon seniority. Always insist on a written, line-item quote with the implant brand, drug regimen, and complication-coverage policy explicitly listed.
Usually a good fit if
- Documented indication from your treating physician with imaging and clinical evidence within 90 days.
- Medically optimised: comorbidities (diabetes, hypertension, anaemia) under reasonable control.
- Stable enough to fly safely — most programs require a basic fitness-to-travel assessment.
- Realistic expectations on outcome, recovery time, and the cadence of follow-up at home.
May need to wait if
- Active uncontrolled infection — needs to be cleared before any elective surgical date.
- Severe comorbidity (advanced heart failure, end-stage organ failure, brittle diabetes) without optimisation.
- Inadequate workup — proceeding without recent imaging or labs adds avoidable risk.
How to prepare
- Stop smoking at least 4 weeks before surgery — wound and anastomotic outcomes both improve.
- Optimise blood sugar (HbA1c <8 ideally) if diabetic.
- Manage anticoagulation with prescribing physician — most need bridging or pause protocols.
Questions to ask your surgeon
- How many of these procedures do you personally perform a year, and what's your team's annual volume?
- What's your 30-day complication rate and how does it benchmark against published international data?
- Which equipment / implant / drug regimen are you planning to use, and why for my specific case?
- What's your conversion-to-open or revision-surgery rate, and what triggers it?
- Who manages me if I deteriorate post-op — is there a sub-specialist intensivist on call 24/7?
- What does your post-discharge handover look like — written report, image CD, drug list, follow-up timeline?
Red flags when comparing hospitals
- Robotic surgery quoted without naming the console surgeon by case volume.
- Quotes that don't itemise prosthesis (penile implant, ureteric stent, mesh).
- Promised continence return at unrealistic timelines.
- Cancer surgery without multidisciplinary uro-oncology review.
Questions about ESWL (Shock Wave Lithotripsy) in South Korea
How much does ESWL (Shock Wave Lithotripsy) cost in South Korea in 2026?
Between $1,950 and $5,600 at most hospitals, with a typical price of $3,650. This is based on 8 hospital prices in South Korea in our database. Your final price depends on the hospital, room type and implant; we send written quotes that list what is included.
Is ESWL (Shock Wave Lithotripsy) cheaper in South Korea than in other countries?
South Korea ranks 5 of 9 destinations we compare for this procedure. The lowest typical price is in India at about $2,063.
How long does a medical visa for South Korea take?
C-3-3 Medical Treatment Visa: processing takes about 5 days and the visa is valid for 90 days. We help with the hospital invitation letter.
How long do I need to stay in-country?
ESWL (Shock Wave Lithotripsy) is typically done as a same-day case, but most programs ask you to stay 5–10 days locally for follow-up before flying.
Is ESWL (Shock Wave Lithotripsy) safe abroad?
At an accredited high-volume centre, yes — the published complication rates are equivalent to top Western tertiary centres. The variable is the centre and the surgeon, not the country. We screen for accreditation, surgeon volume, and complication rates on every program we coordinate.
What recovery timeline should I expect?
Most patients return to daily activity around day 7 and to full activity around day 7. Your case manager will help you sequence the local follow-up before fly-home and the home-country follow-up after.
What's included in the quote?
Typical inclusions: surgeon and anaesthesia fees, theatre and ICU charges, room costs, standard implants/drugs, basic post-op investigations. Itemised exclusions: visa, flights, accommodation outside the hospital, complications (covered separately), translator. Always insist on a written line-item quote.