Biliary Dyskinesia - Is It Real?

Biliary dyskinesia is a functional gallbladder disorder characterized by altered gallbladder motility. This often presents as history of biliary symptoms without imaging evidence of gallstones, sludge, or other structural pathology. The diagnosis is made by demonstration of abnormal gallbladder emptying on hepatic iminodiacetic acid analogue scan with cholecystokinin administration (HIDA-CCK). The aim of this study was to determine if patients with biliary dyskinesia who undergo cholecystectomy have abnormal pathology and resolution of symptoms.

This is a retrospective cohort study reviewing patients with symptomatic cholelithiasis or biliary dyskinesia who underwent cholecystectomy by a single surgical practice from 2015 to 2019. Clinical symptoms, radiologic findings and surgical pathology were assessed. The primary endpoints were pathologic changes and symptom resolution after cholecystectomy. Secondary endpoints were correlation of symptomatic disease with gender, age, and body mass index (BMI). Variables are presented as median (interquartile range [IQR] or frequency [%]).

Four hundred and fifteen patients met inclusion criteria. Of these patients, 89 patients (21%) had biliary dyskinesia. The age of patients with biliary dyskinesia was 46 (33-58) years with the BMI of patients with biliary dyskinesia being 28 (24-33). A total of 82 patients with biliary dyskinesia were women (92%). Patients diagnosed with calculus disease (symptomatic cholelithiasis, acute calculous cholecystitis, choledocholithiasis) had an age of 55 (35-69) years. The majority (214 [66%]) of patients were women with calculus disease and 153 (71%) women had symptomatic cholelithiasis. Significance was observed in BMI between the groups, with the overall being 29 (25-35). The most common presenting symptom was abdominal pain, reported by 86 (97%) patients with biliary dyskinesia. The median ejection fraction (EF) was 18% (11-27%). Three patients with biliary dyskinesia (3%) had a median EF of 94% (86-99%), consistent with hyperkinetic biliary dyskinesia (>80%). Pathology demonstrated chronic cholecystitis in 75 specimens (84%), normal in 9 specimens (10%), and cholesterolosis alone in 5 specimens (7%). All patients experienced resolution of symptoms postoperatively.

Symptomatic patients with evidence of biliary dyskinesia were more likely to be younger and have a lower BMI than those with cholelithiasis and occurred most commonly for women. Most patients with biliary dyskinesia had histologic evidence of chronic gallbladder inflammation. Cholecystectomy resulted in resolution of symptoms in all patients with biliary dyskinesia. Cholecystectomy should be considered for first-line treatment of patients presenting with biliary symptoms, negative ultrasound findings and scintigraphic evidence of abnormal biliary function.