Course of acute cholecystitis in elderly patients treated in a surgical department
General Medicine, 2023, 25(3), 23-27.
G. Gelov1, P. Uchikov2, 3, B. Sakakushev4, 5, A. Uchikov2, 3
1 General Surgery Department, MHAT „Haskovo“ ‒ Haskovo
2 Second Clinic of Surgery, UMHAT „Sveti Georgi“ ‒ Plovdiv
3 Department of Special Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Medical University ‒ Plovdiv
4 First Clinic of Surgery, UMHAT „Sveti Georgi“ ‒ Plovdiv
5 Department of Propedeutics of Surgical Diseases, Faculty of Medicine, Medical University ‒ Plovdiv
Abstract. Acute cholecystitis is the most common complication of gallstone disease, which makes timely diagno- sis of this condition among the elderly, with an adequate approach to treatment, an urgent issue. The aim of the study was to investigate the peculiarities of the course of acute cholecystitis in patients treated in a surgical de- partment. A descriptive, longitudinal, retrospective study was conducted among patients with acute cholecystitis diagnosed, treated and followed up in a surgical department. The subject of the present study were 519 patients over 70 years of age, of whom 365 underwent an abdominal or laparoscopic surgery for acute cholecystitis. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Statistical analysis software SPSS version 17, Windows XP operating system, was used for data processing. One of the main advantages of the present study is the collection of ad- ditional information on the cases of acute cholecystitis in patients over 70 years of age, for which there is limited data in the literature. The data confirm a predominance of the female gender in patients with acute cholecystitis. With increasing age, we find a decrease in the operative at the expense of the conservative surgical approach.
Key words: acute cholecystitis, elderly patients
Address for correspondence: Georgi Gelov, MD, e-mail: ggelov@mail.bg