A concretion formed in the gallbladder or bile ducts. Gallstones are found in about 15% of men and 30% of women in the U.S. They may cause pain in the right upper quadrant of the abdomen (biliary colic) or they may be clinically silent. Gallstones typically are made either of crystallized cholesterol deposits or calcium crystals ionized with bilirubin. Cholesterol stones are about four times as common as calcium-containing stones (also known as pigment stones). Either type of stone may cause biliary symptoms such as pain or inflammation of the gallbladder; the two types of stones differ in that cholesterol stones are nonradiopaque and may on occasion be dissolved by medication, whereas calcium-containing radiopaque stones are not amenable to chemical dissolution and are therefore visible on plain x-rays of the abdomen.
A hard mass formed of cholesterol, bile pigments and calcium salts in the gallbladder or bile duct.
Gallbladder can harbor solidified accumulations of digestive fluid known as gallstones.
A stone that is discovered in either the gallbladder or the bile ducts.