Biliary Diseases Flashcards
Cholelithiasis
- Gallstones are usually asymptomatic in most patients and often found incidentally on imaging studies for other issues
- more common in women
Classic cholelithiasis pain presentation is
RUQ with radiation to the R shoulder and infra scapular area
subscapular pain
Gallstones are classified according to
chemical composition
Treatment for cholelithiasis
-NSAIDs
-Laparoscopic cholecystectomy for symptomatic disease
(Only done in asymptomatic if porcelain gallbladder, stones >3cm, or if a patient is a candidate for bariatric surgery or cardiac transplant)
What to give people who can’t have cholecystectomy surgery
Ursodeoxycholic acid:
-A bile salt given orally for up to 2 years which can help dissolve some cholesterol stones in patients who are unable to have or refuse to have surgery
- Gallstones usually reoccur by 5 years after medication is stopped
- Excess bile salts eliminates itching
How to screen before procedure or to see stones in asymptomatic pts
ultrasound
Clinical example: weight loss procedure, lost weight, right upper shoulder pain, think __________
cholecystitis issue
Porcelain Gallbladder
Chronic cholecystitis can cause hardening of the gallbladder
on XRAY seen as ring enhancing area
Case: A 45yo woman presents to the ER with a c/o steady RUQ tenderness and epigastric pain that began 30min after eating a burrito bowl at chipotle
She felt nauseated and vomited once on the way to the hospital. She has a low grade temp to 100F
She just saw in the news that there has been an e.coli outbreak and she is worried about food poisoning
- “Stabbing pain” in RUQ and upper back
- E. coli doesn’t make you sick right away- usually more than 24 hours to see s/s
- Has happened before after meals- fatty meals make it worse (think hamburger)
Acute Cholecystitis is associated with
gallstones 90% of the time
- Often precipitated by a fatty meal
- Vomiting may give temporary relief
- Physiologically – a stone becomes impacted in the cystic duct and inflammation develops around the obstruction
When acute cholecystitis is not caused by stones, could be caused by
CMV, cryptosporidiosis or microsporidiosis in advanced HIV patients; or by vasculitis
During Acute Cholecystitis, labs will show
WBCs often elevated, LFTs and bilirubin can be elevated, serum amylase may also be mildly elevated
Physical exam sign you should see
- Murphy’s sign is positive when you palpate the RUQ and ask the patient to breathe deeply
- POSITIVE if patient develops pain that radiates to the R infrascapular area or if patient’s inspiration stops short
- Sonographic Murphy’s sign is positive when a patient reports maximum discomfort when the ultrasound probe is over the gallbladder
How to diagnose acute cholecystitis
-Ultrasound may show gallstones, biliary sludge, biliary ductal dilation, gallbladder wall thickening, pericholecystic fluid, and/or a positive sonographic Murphy’s sign
If ultrasound is not convincing of diagnosis, next step is
next step would be to do a hepatic iminodiacetic acid scan (HIDA)
- Test most reliable when bilirubin is under 5mg/dL
- HIDA scan is positive when the gallbladder does NOT light up and when the common bile duct DOES light up
Possible complication of acute cholecystitis
Gangrene of the gallbladder:
- Symptoms of acute cholecystitis severe and lasting 24-48h
- Due to ischemia from splanchnic vasoconstriction
- Could lead to perforation, abscess
- Obese, elderly, diabetics at higher risk
Another complication of acute cholecystitis is Acalculous cholecystitis, consider this if pt has
fever and RUQ pain 2-4 weeks after major surgery or in critically ill ICU patients- sitting, laying on backs, sludge in gallbladder
What can be done if patient too unstable for cholecystectomy?
Drain the gallbladder, go to interventional radiology and they put a drain in (drain stays in for a while)