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Evaluating Diagnostic Markers to Predict Acute Cholecystitis

Wei Wei

Acute Cholecystitis (AC) affects an estimated 20 million patients annually in the United States. The standard of care for treatment is latively straight forward, often times ambulatory Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy (LC). However, in critically ill patients the risk of general anesthesia and a surgical cholecystectomy is often prohibitive. Instead, placement of Percutaneous Cholecystostomy (PC) is preferable. Percutaneous Cholecystostomies can serve as either a definitive procedure or bridging therapy until the patient is clinically stable for a surgical cholecystectomy. During the course of an ICU stay, patients can develop classic signs and symptoms that are attributed to acute cholecystitis standard clinical, laboratory and radiological markers used to diagnose acute cholecystitis are by default and perhaps incorrectly, used to justify PC placement in this unique patient population.