Acute acalculous cholecystitis after trauma: a prospective study.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to identify risk factors for the development of acute acalculous cholecystitis (AAC) and useful criteria to facilitate the decision to perform cholecystectomy.


METHODS
This was a prospective study of patients with an Injury Severity Score (ISS) > or = 12 requiring intensive care for > 4 days (n = 255), divided into three groups by ultrasound: AAC (n = 27), hydropic gallbladder (n = 37), and normal gallbladder (n = 191). Multivariate analysis was conducted for trauma scores and laboratory and intensive care unit (ICU) data and complemented by logistic regression analysis.


RESULTS
Three factors sufficiently define the risk for AAC: ISS, heart rate, and units of packed red blood cells required at ICU admission. All patients who underwent cholecystectomy (n = 21) had both highly pathologic ultrasound and major clinical symptoms, and all had histologically verified AAC. There was no significant difference in daily laboratory data between patients with and without AAC.


CONCLUSIONS
Patients with a high ISS who are tachycardic and have required several units of packed red blood cells at ICU admission should be monitored early by ultrasound. When ultrasound is highly pathologic together with major clinical symptoms, cholecystectomy should be performed. Daily laboratory data are of no additional value regarding the decision to perform cholecystectomy.
Pelinka
Linda E
LE
Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Experimental and Clinical Traumatology, Research Unit of the Austrian Worker's Compensation Board, Vienna, Austria. lindapel@via.at
Schmidhammer
R
R
Hamid
Laith
L
Mauritz
Walter
W
Redl
Heinz
H
D000208:Acute Disease; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002763:Cholecystectomy; D002764:Cholecystitis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000601:surgery*; D002769:Cholelithiasis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000601:surgery*; D003657:Decision Making; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015601:Injury Severity Score; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000150:complications*