Cholelithiasis in general medicine practice

The presence of gallstones is a gallstone disease (cholelithiasis), one of the common pathologies of the hepatobiliary system, which affects up to 10% of the world's population. It is characterized by the formation of stones in the biliary tract: the gallbladder and bile ducts. Cholelithiasis is a condition in which hard stones consisting of cholesterol or bile pigments are formed in the gallbladder (cholecystolithiasis) or the common bile duct (choledocholithiasis). Clinical manifestations of gallstone disease in young people are attacks of biliary colic, often of a protracted nature with manifestations of jaundice. For elderly and senile people, the latent course of the gastrointestinal tract is more characteristic. Ultrasound (detection of biliary sludge) and the study of the physico-chemical properties of cystic and hepatic bile occupy a leading place in the diagnosis of gallstone disease. Treatment is based on operative and non-operative methods (lithotripsy, preparations of cholic acids).