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Familial acalculous gallbladder disease

T A Rizk1, N Deshmukh

  • 1Section of General Vascular Surgery, Guthrie Clinic/Guthrie Medical Center, Sayre, Pa. 18840.

Southern Medical Journal
|February 1, 1993
PubMed

Insights

Familial gallbladder disease, characterized by gallbladder pain without stones, appears to have a genetic component. This suggests a potential link to autonomic nervous system dysfunction affecting gallbladder emptying.

Area of Science:

  • Gastroenterology
  • Genetics
  • Autonomic Nervous System

Background:

  • Gallbladder pain, often without gallstones (acalculous gallbladder disease), can be debilitating.
  • Investigating familial patterns can reveal underlying genetic predispositions to diseases.

Observation:

  • Four sisters with chronic gallbladder pain and no gallstones underwent successful cholecystectomy.
  • A family study across three generations identified numerous relatives, primarily female, with acalculous gallbladder disease.

Findings:

  • The study suggests a familial predisposition to both calculous (with stones) and noncalculous gallbladder disease.
  • Autonomic nervous system disturbances affecting gallbladder emptying may underlie this familial incidence.

Implications:

  • Recognizing a potential genetic link can improve diagnosis and management of gallbladder pain syndromes.
  • Further research into the genetic and neurological factors of gallbladder disease is warranted.

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