Hepatopancreaticobiliary Flashcards
Why is biliary colic a misnomer? What is a better term?
Colicky pain waxes and wanes, but gallstone pain is constant, lasting from min to hours before dissipating.
Symptomatic cholelithiasis is better
What are the main risk factors for developing cholesterol gallstones?
Female
Fat
Forty
Fertile
Why is it important to distinguish between symptomatic cholelithiasis and acute cholecystitis?
Management: symptomatic cholelithiasis is managed as an OP with elective lap chole. Acute cholecystitis requires hospital admission, IV AB and urgent cholecystectomy
What are key differences in history between symptomatic cholelithiasis and acute cholecystitis?
SC: RUQ pain that resolves min to 3-4 hours
AC: Unremitting RUQ pain > 6 hours, N/V
What are key differences in PE between symptomatic cholelithiasis and acute cholecystitis?
SC: Mild RUQ tenderness to palpation
AC: Murphy’s sign
What are key differences in vitals between symptomatic cholelithiasis and acute cholecystitis?
SC: normal
AC: Fever, tachycardia
What are key differences in labs between symptomatic cholelithiasis and acute cholecystitis?
SC: normal WBC
AC: Elevated WBC with left shift
What are key differences in US findings between symptomatic cholelithiasis and acute cholecystitis?
SC: Gallstones
AC: Gallstones, GB wall thickening > 4mm, pericholecystic fluid, sonographic Murphy’s sign
What is the significance of RUQ pain + scapular pain in GB disease?
GB and scapula share same cutaneous dermatome: scapula receives cutaneous innervation from supraclavicular nerves: same STT pathways activated!
What is Murphy’s sign?
When RUQ palpated, patient ceases inspiration
What is significance of Murphy’s sign?
Specific to acute cholecystitis: represents focal peritonitis of anterior abdominal wall parietal peritoneum due to inflammation of adjacent gallbladder
Characterize somatic and visceral pain?
Somatic: well localized, secondary to peritoneal irritation
Visceral: difficult to localize: due to mechanical stretching of visceral organs
What is chronic cholecystitis?
Recurrent bouts of symptomatic cholelithiasis: cause chronic inflammation of GB with fibrotic changes on history consistent with “chronic cholecystitis”
* Biliary colic, symptomatic cholelithiasis and chronic cholecystitis are interchangeable terms
What exactly causes acute cholecystitis?
Sustained obstruction o the cystic duct (by a gallstone usually). This leads to inflammation and edema of the GB wall and eventually bacterial overgrowth and invasion of GB wall. Can lead to ischemia, necrosis and rarely GB perforation
What are typical organisms in bile in acute cholecystitis?
E. coli, Bacterioides, Klebsiella, Enterobacter, Enterococcus, Pseudomonas
What are the 3 components of bile?
Bile salts
cholesterol
Lecitihin
How to cholesterol gallstones form?
Concentration of cholesterol in bile exceeds its solubility: causes precipitation of cholesterol crystals. (Due to low concentration of bile salts or lecithin, or higher levels of cholesterol)
What is the dark color in pigmented stones comprised of?
Calcium bilirubinate
What are black pigmented gallstones associated with? What is the black pigment composed of, and where are they found?
Hemolytic disease: hereditary spherocytosis or sickle cell.
Composed of unconjugated bilirubin in the GB
What are brown pigmented gallstones associated with? Where are they found?
Associated with bacterial infection and parasites.
Found in the bile ducts where they form, more common in Asian countries.
What is choledocolithiasis?
Obstruction of CBD
What is cholangitis?
Obstruction of common bile duct
bacterial overgrowth
infection of the entire biliary tree which ascends into liver
What is acute gallstone pancreatitis?
Obstruction of the common bile duct and pancreatic duct causing pancreatic enzyme release
What is Mirizzi’s syndrome?
Large gallstone impacted in the cystic duct, compressing the common hepatic duct