Decreasing incidence of gallstone disease in a defined Swedish population

The number of operations for biliary stone disease in Sweden has decreased. To assess the changing incidence of gallstone disease, the numbers of gallstone operations and positive and negative cholecystograms occurring in a defined population over a 10-year period were studied. Both investigations showed a highly significant decrease; the cholecystectomy rate was reduced to 57% of that at the beginning, and the proportion of pathological cholecystograms to 35%. The proportion of normal X-ray findings increased over the 10-year period, and a larger proportion of the patients with radiologically confirmed gallstone disease were operated on. The incidence of pathological cholecystograms is considered to be of particular significance with regard to prediction of the incidence of symptomatic cholelithiasis. It is concluded that the incidence of symptomatic gallstone disease decreased during the period studied.