<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><bold>Introduction:</bold> Gallbladder hydrops is an increase in the volume of the gallbladder without any inflammatory sign, bacterial infection or the presence of any abnormalities of the biliary ducts or of the gallbladder.<bold>Case presentation:</bold> A 52-year-old man presented at the Department of Internal Medicine complaining of moderate intensity pain in the right upper quadrant, low fever, fatigue, general weakness, symptoms stemming from an excessive intake of food (a meal abundant in animal proteins, fats, and alcohol) which appeared following a 6-week period of food restriction. On examination, the patient presented a globular abdomen, sensitive to deep palpation in the right upper quadrant, the liver and spleen being impalpable. Blood tests performed on admission showed liver-specific pathological changes. Abdominal ultrasound revealed hepatomegaly with homogeneous echostructure, slightly increased echogenicity with rear attenuation, with no focal images, intrahepatic biliary duct dilatation, or dilated suprahepatic veins. The gallbladder looked dropsical, with slender walls, with images of hyperechoic infundibular calculi with a posterior shadow cone, the largest having 14 mm. The portal vein and bile duct were normal in appearance.<bold>Conclusions:</bold> Gallbladder hydrops is a disorder commonly seen in children. Its occurrence in adults is uncommon, moreover since it occurs simultaneously with an episode of acute toxic hepatitis. Surgery for this patient was possible only after normalization of liver function tests, on admission there being no subjective complaints of marked intensity that required immediate surgery.</abstract>

Introduction: Gallbladder hydrops is an increase in the volume of the gallbladder without any inflammatory sign, bacterial infection or the presence of any abnormalities of the biliary ducts or of the gallbladder.Case presentation: A 52-year-old man presented at the Department of Internal Medicine complaining of moderate intensity pain in the right upper quadrant, low fever, fatigue, general weakness, symptoms stemming from an excessive intake of food (a meal abundant in animal proteins, fats, and alcohol) which appeared following a 6-week period of food restriction. On examination, the patient presented a globular abdomen, sensitive to deep palpation in the right upper quadrant, the liver and spleen being impalpable. Blood tests performed on admission showed liver-specific pathological changes. Abdominal ultrasound revealed hepatomegaly with homogeneous echostructure, slightly increased echogenicity with rear attenuation, with no focal images, intrahepatic biliary duct dilatation, or dilated suprahepatic veins. The gallbladder looked dropsical, with slender walls, with images of hyperechoic infundibular calculi with a posterior shadow cone, the largest having 14 mm. The portal vein and bile duct were normal in appearance.Conclusions: Gallbladder hydrops is a disorder commonly seen in children. Its occurrence in adults is uncommon, moreover since it occurs simultaneously with an episode of acute toxic hepatitis. Surgery for this patient was possible only after normalization of liver function tests, on admission there being no subjective complaints of marked intensity that required immediate surgery.

Gallbladder Hydrops Associated with an Episode of Acute Liver Toxicity in the Adult: May It Be Considered a Surgical Emergency or Not?

Department of Physiology, University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Tîrgu Mureș,

Department of Epidemiology, University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Tîrgu Mureș,

Department of Anatomy, University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Tîrgu Mureș,

Journal of Interdisciplinary Medicine

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Introduction: Gallbladder hydrops is an increase in the volume of the gallbladder without any inflammatory sign, bacterial infection or the presence of any...

Gallbladder Hydrops Associated with an Episode of Acute Liver Toxicity in the Adult: May It Be Considered a Surgical Emergency or Not?

Published Online: Oct 23, 2016

Page range: 180 - 182

Received: May 09, 2016

Accepted: Jul 05, 2016

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/jim-2016-0027

Keywords
gallbladder hydrops, acute toxic hepatitis, surgery

© 2016 Sorin Albu et al., published by De Gruyter Open

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Gallbladder Hydrops Associated with an Episode of Acute Liver Toxicity in the Adult: May It Be Considered a Surgical Emergency or Not?

Published Online: Oct 23, 2016

Page range: 180 - 182

Received: May 09, 2016

Accepted: Jul 05, 2016

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/jim-2016-0027

Keywordsgallbladder hydrops, acute toxic hepatitis, surgery

© 2016 Sorin Albu et al., published by De Gruyter Open

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
gallbladder hydrops, acute toxic hepatitis, surgery