title: What happens to the lost gallstone during laparoscopic cholecystectomy?
abstract: Iatrogenic gallbladder perforation with resultant spillage of bile and gallstones is common during laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Although it's assumed to be harmless, several complications may occur as a result of spillage. We present a 57-year-old woman with localized abdominal pain in the upper abdomen, jaundice, and itching because of retained stones in both common bile duct (CBD) and the abdominal cavity, who had undergone laparscopic cholecystectomy three years previously. After reoperation, stones in the CBD were removed after CBD exploration and a T-tube was inserted. A mass (8 x 5 cm) located in the gastrocolic omentum, which was not reported on imaging studies, was found coincidentally and was totally excised. Investigation of the mass resulted in the discovery of eight gallstones located in the abcess-like central cavity, which was surrounded by fibrous tissue. The patient had an uneventful recovery. Despite the unaffected long-term sequelae, any patients with gallbladder perforations and spillage should not be considered for extension of antibiotic prophylaxis to avoid early complications. Whenever gallstones are lost in the abdominal cavity, every effort should be made to find and remove them to prevent late complications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Ankara Numune Teaching and Research Hospital, 06100 Ankara, Turkey. zbaris61@hotmail.com
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zulfikaroglu
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ozalp
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mahir Ozmen
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Koc
mesh_terms: D015746:Abdominal Pain / Q000209:etiology; D017081:Cholecystectomy, Laparoscopic / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000379:methods; D002769:Cholelithiasis / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D005547:Foreign Bodies / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D007565:Jaundice / Q000209:etiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009852:Omentum / Q000601:surgery*; D012086:Reoperation