Management of Symptomatic Gall Stones in a Tertiary Care Health Facility in Southern Nigeria: A Recent Study

Background: Gall stone disease is one of the most common problems affecting the digestive tract. The disease spectrum ranges from silent stones to symptomatic stones with its various complications. The disease is relatively uncommon among people of the black race being unknown amongst the Bantu and Masai tribes of Africa. Surgery remains the main stay of treatment for symptomatic gallstone disease as other methods of therapy are largely unsatisfactory. Open surgery was once the only option surgically but with the advent of minimally invasive techniques laparoscopic cholecystectomy has now become the gold standard of surgical care.

Aim: Although not common in this environment there is a need to evaluate the age and sex prevalence, types of stone prevalent here, varying modes of clinical presentation and spectrum of the disease as well as treatment modalities adopted in this institution.

Methods: This is a retrospective review of all cases done in this institution within a sixteen-year period. The case files of these patients were retrieved and relevant information extracted using a proforma. The results were analysed using SPSS VERSION 22.

Results: The collated information showed that gall stone disease is commoner in females with a male female ratio of 1: 5.6 the most preponderant age group was 41-50 years, commonest mode of presentation was recurrent right hypochondrial/epigastric pain. Commonest stone type was mixed contrary to what obtains in Europe and North America.

Conclusion: This study established that gall stone disease is overwhelmingly preponderant in females in this locality and continue to be treated here by open surgery.