indications
Last reviewed 01/2018
Oral dissolution therapy for gallstones is indicated in:
- patients who refuse surgery
- those unfit for surgery
- patients with mild to moderate biliary colic - i.e. without surgical complications
- as an adjunct to other therapies
- patients with radiolucent stones
Better success is attained with:
- uncalcified cholesterol stones of less than 1.5 cm diameter
- a patent cystic duct
- younger, less obese patients as the stone is less likely to consist of calcium and pigment