What is gallstone disease?

Etiology: Cholelithiasis refers to stones that originate in the gallbladder and those that originate in the biliary system, both of which differ significantly in their pathogenesis and clinical course.Gallstones occur as a result of abnormalities in the metabolism of bile, in the event of alterations in the normal balance of its various components, or in the event of some pathological condition of the biliary system. The main components of gallstones are cholesterol, bilirubin, calcium, etc. They are closely related to the patient’s dietary habits, nutritional conditions, geography, pathological changes in the biliary tract itself and the body’s metabolic activity. According to the Chinese Surgical Association, the results of the domestic census of some specific groups of people organized by ultrasound diagnostic equipment show that among adults, the incidence of gallstones is 7.1% on average, higher than in rural areas, and higher in developed and affluent areas than in backward and impoverished areas. From the results of patient statistics, the age span of patients from 12 to 95 years old, 45 to 65 years old when the peak of clinical symptoms. Symptoms: gallstone colic, also known as biliary colic, is the main clinical symptom of acute attack of gallstone disease, it is the gallstone in the gallbladder to move, caused by the obstruction of the gallbladder duct or the common bile duct, often occurs in the greasy food into the postural changes, the performance of the right epigastric or subxiphoid (commonly known as the pain of the heart) persistent distension and pain accompanied by vibratory colic, gallbladder stone disease, and the pain to the back of the right shoulder, waking up at night from the pain of sleep, accompanied by nausea, vomiting. Vomiting. The lower end of the common bile duct stone incarceration, in addition to colic also appear chills, high fever, followed by skin, sclera yellow staining and acute cholangitis manifestations, serious cases can be induced by cholestatic pancreatitis, the consequences are very serious, the occurrence of the above situation should be immediately to the hepatobiliary surgical department of the general hospital, so as to avoid delay in the treatment, otherwise it can lead to perforation of the gallbladder, biliary sweat peritonitis, peri-gallbladder abscess, hepatic abscess, the gallbladder with the Duodenum, transverse colon, bile duct fistula, acute suppurative cholangitis, serious liver function damage and infectious shock and other serious complications, life-threatening. Treatment: For chronic stone cholecystitis caused by cholelithiasis, acute suppurative cholecystitis, acute suppurative cholangitis, liver abscess, fibrosis or atrophy of liver tissue. “The principle of hepato-biliary surgery is to remove the lesion, relieve the obstruction, and smooth the drainage, and the surgical method depends on the location of the gallstone obstruction, the duration of the disease, the age, the physical condition, and the degree of tolerance to surgical anesthesia. For example: 1, gallbladder stones: laparoscopic or open surgery can be used to remove the stone-containing pathologic gallbladder, and appropriate management of extracolonic complications of stones. 2, gallbladder stones secondary choledocholithiasis: for patients with severe septic cholangitis can also be used first duodenal speculum retrograde insertion into the common bile duct with nasobiliary drainage decompression, or incision of the duodenal papilla to remove the stones in the lower end of the common bile duct, to be stabilized after the patient’s general condition, and then elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy. 3.Intrahepatic bile duct stones: to cut open the common bile duct to explore and take the stones, to use choledochoscope to further explore, to take the clean intrahepatic and extrahepatic bile duct stones and dredge the bile duct, and put “T-shaped tube” drainage, for a moment can not be taken to get clean of the hepatic and biliary ducts more than 3 cast stone, can be in the choledochoscope guided by the use of stone crushing instrument to repeatedly take the stone; for the obstructive section of liver above the chronic fibrosis caused by repeated infections, chronic fibrosis and other diseases. For the liver above the obstructed section, partial resection of the diseased liver is necessary if recurrent infections and chronic fibrosis lead to atrophy and loss of function of the liver tissue.