| Abstract: |
Over 20 million Americans have gallstones, and more than 700,000 cholecystectomies (gallbladder removal) are performed annually in the United States. Gallstone-related symptoms and complications are among the most common gastroenterological disorders requiring hospitalization, at an estimated annual cost of almost $6.5 billion. This chapter on gallstones is from a comprehensive gastroenterology textbook that provides an encyclopedic discussion of virtually all the disease states encountered in a gastroenterology practice. In this chapter, the authors cover epidemiology, etiology (cause), clinical manifestations, differential diagnosis, clinical course and complications, treatment, acalculous cholecystitis (inflamed gallbladder without the presence of stones), and recurrent pyogenic cholangitis (bile duct inflammation). The chapter is illustrated with black-and-white radiographs and drawings. 6 figures. 4 tables. 307 references. |