Treatment of gallstones.

PURPOSE: To critically review the risks and benefits of therapy for asymptomatic and symptomatic persons with gallstones who are considering therapy to prevent future episodes of biliary pain or complications including acute cholecystitis, pancreatitis, or gallbladder cancer. DATA SOURCES: Review of English-language literature regarding the natural history of persons with gallstones and the operative mortality rates for open cholecystectomy and laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Mathematical simulation modeling was used to derive estimates of lifetime risks for gallstone-related mortality and for life expectancy, for prophylactic cholecystectomy and expectant management, for men and women of different ages. RESULTS: For persons with asymptomatic gallstones, natural history is so benign that treatment is generally not recommended. For persons with symptomatic gallstones, (that is, that have caused an episode of biliary pain), the rate for subsequent pain is high so that many persons probably choose cholecystectomy to avoid pain; however, about 30% of persons who have had pain do not have further episodes of pain. The expected loss of life for persons with symptomatic stones managed expectantly is roughly several months, on average, and may not be considered high enough in itself to warrant therapy. Although laparoscopic cholecystectomy has become popular with patients and physicians, its safety is yet unknown compared with open cholecystectomy. CONCLUSION: Prophylactic cholecystectomy should be recommended for most persons with symptomatic gallstones unless the person wants to try a period of watchful waiting to see if pain recurs. Nonsurgical therapy may be suitable for persons with high operative risk. For persons with asymptomatic gallstones, watchful waiting is the best course.

Biliary tract disease in the aged.

Gallstone disease occurs in 20% to 30% of the elderly, is usually silent, and is rarely fatal. Silent GSD requires no treatment. Symptomatic GSD can be treated surgically, nonsurgically, or, if there are minimal symptoms, expectantly. The decision is based largely on physician experience and informed patient preference. Nonsurgical treatment is evolving and has particular appeal for the elderly but does have restricting eligibility requirements and limited efficacy. For acute cholecystitis, early surgery is advisable, except for high-risk patients, in whom conservative treatment or cholecystostomy may be preferable. For choledocholithiasis with persistent obstruction or cholangitis and for severe biliary pancreatitis, ERCP with sphincterotomy and stone removal is usually advisable. Benign biliary strictures are infrequent, usually iatrogenic, and a diagnostic consideration whenever biliary obstruction develops within a year after cholecystectomy. Treatment is usually surgical and not always successful. Biliary strictures in patients with ulcerative colitis suggest PSC. Malignant biliary obstruction is common in the elderly and with a few exceptions is rarely curable. Palliation is often achieved by endoscopic stenting.

Management of patients with symptomatic gallstones: a quantitative analysis.

Should persons with symptomatic gallstones (i.e., those that have caused biliary pain) be treated immediately? Or may they be managed expectantly until pain recurs or a biliary complication (i.e., acute cholecystitis or pancreatitis) occurs? To assess the mortality risk of different strategies, we performed a quantitative analysis. For the expectant management strategy that requires surgery only if a biliary complication occurs, the cumulative lifetime probability of gallstone disease death in a 30-year-old man is about 2%, and most deaths occur after age 65. In comparison, elective cholecystectomy has only a 0.1% rate of gallstone disease death, but all deaths occur at age 30. The average amount of life expectancy gained by immediate cholecystectomy compared with expectant management is 52 days, which is reduced to 23 days using 5% discounting. This gain could be increased only slightly by a 100% effective and risk-free therapy such as perfected lithotripsy or medical dissolution. Results are similar for women. The results suggest that, for persons with symptomatic gallstones, the life expectancy gain of immediate cholecystectomy is relatively small and that the potential incremental gain of nonsurgical therapy is also small. For patients and physicians who believe that life expectancy is of primary consideration, the decision about therapy may be made primarily on non-mortality considerations. Some patients and physicians may decide that the risk of symptomatic gallstones is low enough that a policy of expectant management may be acceptable.

Prophylactic cholecystectomy or expectant management for silent gallstones. A decision analysis to assess survival.

Decision analysis was done to compare the consequences of prophylactic cholecystectomy with expectant management for silent gallstone disease. Probability values were derived from a study of the natural history of silent gallstone disease, published cholecystectomy mortality rates, and life tables. The two strategies were compared by calculating cumulative numbers of person-years lost for hypothetical cohorts of men and women. Prophylactic cholecystectomy slightly decreases survival. A 30-year-old man choosing prophylactic cholecystectomy instead of expectant management would lose, on average, 4 days of life; a 50-year-old man would lose 18 days. Consideration of monetary costs and discounting further disfavors prophylactic cholecystectomy. Sensitivity analysis shows that differences between the two strategies remain small over a broad range of probability values, both for men and women.

Endoscopic identification and removal of an unusual symptomatic colonic foreign body.

The discovery and removal of a life-threatening colonic wire suture using the flexible fiberoptic colonoscope has been described. Such reports demonstrate the versatility and usefulness of diagnostic and therapeutic endoscopic procedures.