SURGICAL APPROACHES TO GALLBLADDER DISEASES; A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF RECENT LITERATURE

Introduction: One of the major, most common health issues in the United States, Europe, and around the world is gallbladder disease. About 6.3 million and 14.2 million, men and women, respectively, suffer from a gallbladder disease in the United States alone. Most patients who have gallstones stay asymptomatic for a long time. However, it is still important to address their disease, and prevent it from turning into a symptomatic disease. Aim of work: We will discuss the most recent approaches to gallstone disease treatment, and we will focus on surgical approaches to symptomatic and complicated gallstone disease. Methodology: We conducted a systematic comprehensive search in literature review using Medline, Pubmed, and Embase. We used the terms gallbladder disease, gallbladder stones, gallstones, surgical approaches, laparoscopy, and cholecystectomy as search items. Conclusions: About three quarter of gallstone cases are classified as cholesterol gallstones. Risk factors for developing cholesterol gallstone disease include older age, female sex, pregnancy state, insulin resistance, obesity, decreased physical activity, use of oral contraception, and diabetes mellitus type 2. The definitive treatment for gallstones disease is surgical cholecystectomy. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy was primarily introduced in the year 1985 and led to significant advance in the management of gallstone disease. Since then, it has replaced open cholecystectomy and became the standard surgical approach in the treatment of gallstone disease, due to its safety and cost-effectiveness. Open cholecystectomy could be used in patients who cannot undergo laparoscopic cholecystectomy, or who have severe gallbladder disease. Other options include percutaneous cholecystectomy, and endoscopic drainage.