A STUDY OF SYMPTOMATIC AND SILENT GALLSTONE

An attempt has been made to determine why gallstones give rise to symptoms in some patients and not in others. The clinical features of patients undergoing gallbladder surgery for gallstones (symptomatic stones) have been compared with patients in whom gallstones were found incidentally at postmortem ('silent' stones). The gallstones found in these two groups of patients have been compared for number, size, and content of mucous substances. Patients with gallstone disease did not produce organ specific antibodies to the gallbladder tissues. No conclusions could be derived as to what determines whether or not a stone becomes symptomatic. © 1968 Informa UK Ltd.