Between June, 1985 and November, 1986, 25 patients at our institute underwent retrograde nephrostomy placement to provide percutaneous access to the kidney for percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PNL) of renal or upper ureteral calculi. Overall, retrograde nephrostomy was successfully completed through the desired calyx in 80% of the patients and calculi were successfully removed by the subsequent PNL. There were 5 failures primarily due to wrong indication and inexperience with the technique. The procedures had been done without significant complications in this series including unsuccessful cases. On the basis of our experiences, it is practically important for successful retrograde nephrostomy to fix the tip of the catheter firmly in the desired calyx until the puncture wire is advanced into the renal parenchyma. It is also important to aim the puncture wire at the skin in a favorable direction to avoid adjacent visceral penetration. Retrograde nephrostomy is a useful aid for percutaneous calculus removal particularly in patients with nondilated intrarenal collecting systems, because this new technique allows precise tract placement to the kidney required for efficient calculus manipulation with less risk than that associated with conventional percutaneous nephrostomy.