What are gallbladder polyps?

  Polypoid lesions of the gallbladder are a collective term for limited bulging-like lesions of the gallbladder mucosa, which are divided into two categories: non-neoplastic and neoplastic, and are clinically classified as cholesterol polyps, inflammatory polyps, gallbladder adenomas, and adenomyosis of the gallbladder.  There are 15-25% of asymptomatic people found in physical examination or other incidental circumstances, and the rest of patients have symptoms similar to chronic cholecystitis such as discomfort and vague pain in the right upper abdomen, mostly persistent or intermittent vague pain, and a few patients have radiating pain in the back of the shoulder.  Ultrasound: Intense light spots and clusters of varying sizes are seen on the inner wall of the gallbladder, with no acoustic shadow, and do not move with changes in body position.  Classification: ①Cholesterol polyps, generally formed by a large number of macrophages after phagocytosis of cholesterol and foam cells gathered and attached to the wall, no cancer has been reported.  (2) Inflammatory polyps, granulomas caused by chronic cholecystitis or gallstones directly stimulating the gallbladder wall, papillary protrusion into the lumen, single or multiple broad-based nodules, may have a tendency to become cancerous.  (3) Gallbladder adenomas, mostly yellow soft warts, single or multiple, are currently considered to be carcinogenic.  ④Gallbladder adenomyosis is characterized by hyperplasia of gallbladder glands and smooth muscles, which can form stones due to bile stasis and cholesterol deposition, and can cause mucosal necrosis and infection, which can induce epithelial hyperplasia, followed by abnormal hyperplasia, and is also considered as one of the precancerous lesions.  In recent years, with the widespread use of ultrasound, the number of gallbladder polyp-like lesions detected has been increasing year by year, but there are still many difficulties in the clinical differentiation between non-tumor and tumor-like gallbladder polyp-like lesions, and how to identify tumor-like changes or precancerous lesions from gallbladder polyp-like lesions has become a very important issue in diagnosis and treatment.  At present, it is believed that the size of gallbladder polypoid lesions is valuable in identifying benign and malignant lesions. 94% of benign lesions are less than 10 mm in diameter, while 88% of malignant lesions are larger than 10 mm in diameter, and adenomas have been recognized as precancerous lesions, with a cancer rate of 10%-30%.  How to treat: In 1989, the fourth national biliary conference proposed that polyps with a diameter >10mm and a tendency to become larger and symptomatic should be included in the category of possible carcinogenesis. Most scholars believe that polyp-like lesions larger than 8 mm in diameter, older than 50 years old, with a wide base, combined with stones and a tendency to increase in size should be surgically removed. If the diameter of the lesion is less than 8mm, with a thin tip, slow growth and no stones, surgery can be suspended, and regular ultrasound review; if the mass is found to have a tendency to increase, then active surgery should be performed; if the right upper abdominal discomfort, vague pain and other symptoms are more obvious, anti-inflammatory and biliary drugs can be used to treat.