[Cholelithiasis in patients over 75 years of age. Apropos of 147 cases]

The authors perform a retrospective study of a series of 147 patients aged 75 and more, who were treated for gallstone. AMong them, 104 had conventional surgery and 43 a nonsurgical treatment. The noticeable elements produced by this analysis are: the frequency of common bile duct lithiasis and of severe septic complication in elderly patients, the frequency of previous gallstone, sometimes remote in time, a significantly higher mortality when the treatment is non-surgical (p less than 0.001), mainly due to the septic complications of the lithiasis. the influence of the diathesis on mortality, and finally, the greater inocuity of the right infracostal approach in view of respiratory complications.