What Are Gallstones?

To understand gallstones, let's first go over some basic anatomy. The liver makes bile, a yellow-green liquid important for digestion. Underneath the liver is the gallbladder, a small sac that stores and releases bile. The gallbladder is connected to the liver by tubes called bile ducts, and these ducts also connect to the intestines. When you eat, your gallbladder releases bile into your intestines.

How do gallstones form?

Cholesterol and minerals in the bile can clump together and form "stones" in the gallbladder. These stones can be as small as grains of sand or as big as golf balls.

What kind of problems do they cause?

If a gallstone blocks a bile duct, it can cause severe pain and other problems. The pain can be in the upper abdomen, usually on the right side. Typically, people get this pain right after eating a fatty meal and it usually goes away within a few hours. In some cases, gallstones can lead to severe infection and other problems like pancreatitis, which can be life threatening.

Although gallstones can cause severe abdominal pain, 80 percent of people with gallstones have no problems. In fact, they may not even know that they have gallstones.

Who gets gallstones?

There are certain factors that make some people more at risk than others, including:

• Being female
• Being overweight
• Being in your 40s and 50s
• Having had many pregnancies
• Rapid weight loss
• Family history of gallstones
• Hispanic or American-Indian heritage
• Sickle cell disease or other conditions where red blood cells break down quickly
• Use of certain medications

This isn't to say that a young thin man couldn't get gallstones; anyone can get them.

How do I prevent gallstones?

The most important thing you can do to prevent gallstones is to maintain a healthy weight. You don't want to lose weight too quickly, so getting proper nutrition and exercise is best. If you are trying to lose weight, you should only be losing a pound or two a week. If you lose too much weight too quickly, you could put yourself at risk for gallstones.

Surgery is usually the best way to remove gallstones (if they need to be removed because of symptoms), but other options are available. If you think you may have them, talk with your doctor about what you should do.

Related Articles Planning Ahead for Your Hospital Stay Healthy Eating Habits for Your Stomach and Intestines

External Sources American College of Gastroenterology American College of Surgeons National Institutes of Health (NIH) The Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons

This article was reviewed and updated June 2007.

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