Gall bladder disease as seen in a Harare referral hospital centre.

A five-year study of patients treated for gall bladder disease in Harare was done from 1984-1988. The aim of the study was to highlight the importance of the disease and its unusual presentation as compared to the typical European pattern. The disease is relatively uncommon since only 54 patients were treated while the total hospital admission for the period was 41,891. The disease affected mainly middle-aged housewives. The patients tend to present as semi surgical emergencies. Diagnosis was made most often by Ultrasound scan (U/S) and oral cholangiogram. A few patients had radio opaque gall stones. The majority of the patients, 33, had straightforward cholecystectomy. Ten needed exploration of common bile duct (ECBD) and four were difficult enough to need ECBD, Duodenotomy and sphincterotomy. Operative complications were few considering the mode of presentation. Two patients died, a mortality rate of 3.7 percent.