Cholecystolithiasis is a very common disease caused by stones in the gallbladder or bile duct.
Once the bile flow in the gallbladder is not smooth and stasis occurs, it is easy to produce stones. To put it bluntly, stones may occur anywhere in the biliary system where bile flows.
Although the reason is very simple, the occurrence of gallstones is the result of a combination of factors.
Image source: Zhanku Hailuo
What are the symptoms of gallstones?
The specific clinical manifestations of gallstones depend on the location of the gallstone, whether it causes bile duct obstruction, infection, and other factors.
General gallbladder stones usually have no obvious symptoms in the early stages. They are called asymptomatic gallstones or cholelithiasis, and are mostly found during routine physical examinations.
Sometimes there can be mild discomfort that can be mistaken for a stomach problem and not seen in time.
Small stones in the gallbladder, if incarcerated in the neck of the gallbladder, can cause clinical symptoms, usually manifested as biliary colic, pain in the right upper quadrant or upper quadrant, radiating to the right shoulder blade or back, May be accompanied by nausea and vomiting.
Pain can be exacerbated by gallbladder contractions, especially after eating a greasy diet, or by changing body position during sleep. Jaundice occurs in rare cases and is generally mild.
What causes gallstones to form?
The causes of gallstones are very complex, and some of them are irreversible factors, such as:
Increasing age, female, ethnic, genetic and family history;
Some are acquired and some are reversible, such as: pregnancy, obesity, low-fiber, high-calorie diet, prolonged fasting, certain drugs (eg, ceftriaxone, lipid-lowering drugs, oral contraceptives), rapid weight loss, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, etc.
The exact cause is not fully understood yet.
You may have heard the old people say that “if you don’t eat breakfast, you will get gallbladder stones”, but what is the truth?
In order to answer your questions, on Tuesday, Dr. Lilac invited Jiang Nanfang, the attending physician of the Department of Gastroenterology at Hubei Third People’s Hospital, to share with you “Cholecystolithiasis” ”.