Removal of a fascinating cholesterol gallbladder stone!
What does it resemble? π₯ The gallbladder is a small, pear-shaped organ on the right side of the abdomen, just beneath the liver. It holds a digestive fluid called bile that's released into the small intestine. Gallstones come in many different shapes, sizes, and quantities. They can be made up of a variety of different combinations and percentages of cholesterol, bile salts, lecithin, bilirubin, etc. Cholesterol stones account for > 85% of gallstones, and for them to actually form, bile must be supersaturated with cholesterol, with nucleation and stone growth. Normally, water-insoluble cholesterol is made water soluble by combining with bile salts and lecithin to form mixed micelles. Supersaturation of bile with cholesterol most commonly results from excessive cholesterol secretion but may result from a decrease in bile salt secretion or in lecithin secretion. Thus, the excess cholesterol must precipitate from solution as solid microcrystals, which aggregates and grows. Yellow snd soft gallstones have more cholesterol in them, black ones have more bilirubin, and hard ones likely have more bile salt component to them. Migration of a gallstone into the opening of the cystic duct may block the outflow of bile during gallbladder contraction. The resulting increase in gallbladder wall tension produces the characteristic type of pain we know as biliary colic. Cystic duct obstruction, if it persists for more than a few hours, may lead to acute gallbladder inflammation (acute cholecystitis). Choledocholithiasis on the other hand, refers to the presence of gallstones in the common bile duct. Usually, this occurs when a gallstone successfully passes further all the way from gallbladder to the cystic duct and into the common bile duct.