Cholecystitis - Definition and Overview

Cholecystitis is inflammation of the gallbladder. It may be acute or chronic.

The most common cause of cholecystitis is infection, usually from colonization by gut organisms. Cholecystitis is often accompanied by presence of gallstones. The classical patient with cholecystitis is described as "fat, forty, female and fertile".

Initial treatment of acute cholecystitis is usually medical which usually consists of antibiotics and supportive therapy followed by surgical removal of the gallbladder - cholecystectomy. Cholecystectomies can be performed as a laparotomy or laparoscopically although the established trend is for laparoscopic operations which has the benefit of shorter post-operation recovery times and smaller surgical scars.

External links

• Acute cholecystitis (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000264.htm)