透析患者胆囊结石患病率及其危险因素分析

目的调查透析患者胆囊结石患病情况,探讨其患病率是否高于普通人群,血液透析及腹膜透析患者胆囊结石患病率是否有差别,并分析其可能的原因。方法回顾性分析2009年1月-2012年10月长期随访的358例透析患者（126例血液透析、232例腹膜透析）胆囊结石患病情况,与376例初诊的慢性肾脏病5期患者及普通人群胆囊结石患病率进行比较。结果长期透析患者胆囊结石患病率为23．5％,高于初诊的慢性肾脏病5期患者（14．4％）及普通人群（P=-0．002）。在年龄〈60岁患者中,腹膜透析患者胆囊结石患病率明显高于血液透析患者（P〈0．05）,其白蛋白水平明显低于血液透析患者,同时胆固醇、低密度脂蛋白、低密度脂蛋白与高密度脂蛋白比值等指标明显高于血液透析患者。多因素回归分析得出透析患者胆囊结石危险因素有：高龄（OR=2．581,P=-0．001）、女性（OR=2．554,P=0．000）、原发病（糖尿病）（OR=1．947,P=-0．044）、透析时间（OR=1．000,P=0．006）。结论透析患者胆囊结石患病率高于普通人群,腹膜透析比血液透析胆囊结石患病风险增加,透析患者胆囊结石危险因素有：高龄、女性、原发病（糖尿病）、血脂紊乱、低蛋白血症、透析时间等。     

Prevalence of and risk factors for gallstones in female population of Novosibirsk

AIM: To investigate the prevalence of gallstones and associated factors in female population of Novosibirsk (Western Siberia). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A representative sample of 870 women aged 25-64 years was drawn from general population according to WHO "MONICA" protocol. The subjects were screened for the presence of gallstones by gallbladder ultrasonography, completed a questionnaire relating to food and alcohol consumption, smoking, gastrointestinal symptoms and obstetric history. They also underwent physical examination and blood chemistry tests. Age-adjusted prevalence of cholelithiasis was 9.5%. Increasing age, obesity, diabetes mellitus, consumption of animal fat, pregnancies and opisthorchiasis positively correlated with gallstones in univariate analysis. Serum lipids, family history of gallstones, consumption of alcohol and tobacco were not predictors of gallstones. Only association with age and obesity was significant in multivariate analysis. Among subjects with cholelithiasis 52.1% were not aware of having gallstones. Subjects with gallstones more frequently suffered from biliary colics and non-specific dyspeptic symptoms. However, their predictive value was poor. Cholecystectomized patients revealed more often upper abdominal pain and dyspeptic symptoms. CONCLUSION: Prevalence and risk factors for gallstones in female population of Novosibirsk are similar to those reported in Western European countries. Cholecystectomy is not recommended in patients with symptomless disease.     

Gallbladder motility and cholesterol crystallization in bile from patients with pigment and cholesterol gallstones

BACKGROUND: Little is known about gallbladder motility in patients with black pigment stones when compared to cholesterol gallstone patients, or about their relationship to biliary composition, crystallization and stone characteristics. DESIGN: Fasting and postprandial gallbladder volumes were studied by ultrasonography in 49 gallstone patients with pigment (n = 14) or cholesterol (n = 35) stones and 30 healthy controls. After cholecystectomy stone composition, gallbladder wall inflammation, cholesterol saturation index and appearance of platelike cholesterol crystals in bile were evaluated in gallstone patients. RESULTS: Fasting gallbladder volume was significantly (P < 0.05) increased in cholesterol stone patients (31.7 +/- 1.9 mL) but not in pigment stone patients (21.9 +/- 3.1 mL), compared to controls (21.0 +/- 1.5 mL). Postprandial emptying was delayed in patients (half-emptying time: 31 +/- 2 min, 35 +/- 3 min, 24 +/- 2 min in cholesterol stone patients, pigment stone patients and controls, respectively, P < 0.05) and incomplete (residual volume: 43.2 +/- 2.7%, 40.0 +/- 4.3%, 15.8 +/- 1.6% min in cholesterol stone patients, pigment stone patients and controls, respectively, P < 0.05). The inflammation of the gallbladder wall was mild or absent in all cases. Biliary cholesterol saturation index was 152.3 +/- 8.5% and 92.9 +/- 4.8% in patients with cholesterol and pigment stones, respectively (P < 0.01). Whereas cholesterol crystals never appeared during 21 days in biles from patients with pigment stones, crystal observation time in patients with cholesterol gallstone was 5 days (median) and was significantly shorter in patients with multiple (4 days) than in patients with solitary (12 days) cholesterol stones (P = 0.0019). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with black pigment stones who do not have excess cholesterol and do not grow cholesterol crystals in bile have decreased gallbladder emptying, although to a lesser extent than patients with cholesterol stones. Thus, gallbladder stasis is likely to put a subset of subjects at risk for the formation of pigment gallstones, and pathogenic mechanisms need to be further investigated.     

胆囊癌合并胆囊结石的超声研究

目的 探讨易合并胆囊癌的高危胆囊结石声像图特征，为胆囊结石患者选择预防性胆囊切除提供影像学依据。方法 分析37例胆囊癌合并胆囊结石术前超声检查的声像图特点。结果 26例（71％）同时合并慢性胆囊炎。29例（78％）为单发结石且结石大小超过1cm。扫查时27例（73％）结石不移动。胆固醇性和混合性结石共33例（89％）。结论 单发、体积较大且移动性差的胆固醇性或混合性结石更倾向于合并胆囊癌，当超声检查发现上述特点，尤其是同时存在慢性胆囊炎时，提示有较强的预防性胆囊切除指征。     

Pigment vs cholesterol cholelithiasis: clinical and epidemiological aspects.

This prospective study demonstrated that among 92 consecutive patients who underwent cholecystectomy for gallstones at an urban university hospital, 27% had pigment stones and 73% had cholesterol stones. Age, sex, and weight, but not race, were significant determinants of stone type. The mean hemoglobin, direct and total serum bilirubin, and fasting glucose concentrations were similar for each group. The presence of alcoholism, diabetes, thyroid disease, or heterozygous hemoglobinopathy did not influence stone type. The average patient with pigment stones is a lean man or woman 63 years old; in contrast the composite patient with cholesterol stones is a modestly overweight woman 43 years old.     

Bile acid and phospholipid fatty acid composition in bile of patients with cholesterol and pigment gallstones.

It has been previously reported that patients with cholesterol gallstones have increased biliary deoxycholate and arachidonate content as compared with normal subjects without gallstones. Increased biliary deoxycholate and arachidonate content might be a primary factor in the pathogenesis of cholesterol gallstones or merely an epiphenomenon due to the presence of gallstones. We therefore compared biliary bile acid composition in 46 patients with cholesterol gallstones and 22 patients with pigment stones. In addition, biliary phospholipid fatty acid composition was determined in 44 of these patients (30 cholesterol and 14 pigment stone patients). No significant differences were detected. In particular, the percentage deoxycholic acid (mean +/- SD: 20.3 +/- 8.8% and 21.5 +/- 10.9% respectively) and the percentage arachidonic acid (4.4 +/- 2.0% and 4.5 +/- 2.2%, respectively) were very similar. A significant correlation between age and biliary cholesterol saturation index was found only for the group of patients with pigment stones (R = 0.52, p less than 0.02). In conclusion, the present study does not support a primary role for increased biliary deoxycholic acid or arachidonic acid in the pathogenesis of cholesterol gallstones.     

Analysis of radiolucent gallstones by computed tomography for in vivo estimation of stone components

Successful oral litholytic and other nonoperative therapies of gallstones require exact determination of the stone components. Since computed tomography (CT) provides highly sensitive measurement of density, we performed a study to evaluate whether CT measurement of stone density allows a prediction of the composition of radiolucent gallstones. Twenty-eight patients presenting with 29 radiolucent gallbladder (n = 17) or common bile duct stones (n = 12) were included. Prior to operative or endoscopic therapy the attenuation values (Hounsfield Units, HU) were assessed in vivo by CT under standardized conditions (Somatom II, 125 KV, 130 mAs). After surgical or endoscopic stone removal the concrements were dehydrated, homogenized and then analysed by infra-red spectroscopy. The previously measured Hounsfield units were not known to the investigator. Eighteen cholesterol and 11 pigment stones could be identified. The attenuation values (Hounsfield units) of cholesterol stones amounting to 28-98 HU (48.7 +/- 4.4 HU) differed significantly (P less than 0.001) from pigment stones (90-120 HU/105.5 +/- 2.8 HU). We conclude that computed tomography provides exact discrimination between cholesterol and non-cholesterol stones in vivo. Since only cholesterol stones can be dissolved by cheno- and ursodeoxycholic acid we recommend measurement of the radiodensity of gallstones by CT prior to any litholytic therapy. Furthermore the prediction of the stone composition facilitates the decision on extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy and the selection of specific solvents for contact lysis via a nasobiliary probe.     

Deoxycholic acid is not related to lithogenic factors in gallbladder bile

The influence of deoxycholic acid (DCA) on the factors in gallbladder bile responsible for cholesterol gallstone disease has been a controversial subject of discussion. This might be partially due to patient selection or inappropriate methods. Therefore, we investigated the relationship between the percentage of DCA and lithogenic factors in the gallbladder bile of patients with cholesterol gallstones and with normal or moderately impaired gallbladder contractility. Patients with pigment stones served as a control group. The percentage of DCA in the gallbladder bile of 20 patients with cholesterol stones (23.2%+/-6.5%; mean+/-SD) was comparable to the DCA percentage in the gallbladder bile of 11 patients with pigment stones (26.5%+/-8.5%). No correlation was seen between the DCA percentage of total bile acids and the crystal observation time, cholesterol saturation index (CSI), total protein value, mucin level, and amount of cholesterol in vesicles or crystals in the total group of patients or in the subgroups with cholesterol or pigment stones, respectively. The lack of correlation between DCA percentage and CSI was determined in native bile (r = 0.048) as well as in crystal-free bile after ultracentrifugation (r = 0.107). Our findings demonstrate that in patients with gallstones, the percentage of DCA in gallbladder bile is not related to any of the known biliary factors associated with cholesterol gallstone disease. We conclude that in patients with normal or moderately impaired gallbladder function, an elevated DCA level in the gallbladder bile is of minor pathophysiologic significance for the formation of cholesterol gallstones.     

The formation of abnormal bile and cholesterol gallstones from dietary cholesterol in the prairie dog

To study the pathogenesis of cholesterol gallstones, we fed 24 adult male prairie dogs a high cholesterol, egg yolk diet. 13 control animals received a cholesterol-free diet. All animals fed the egg yolk diet formed multiple gallstones in 2-6 months' time. These stones contained cholesterol, 77+/-14% by dry weight. No stones ocurred in the control group.The egg yolk-fed animals developed bile of altered chemical composition. The cholesterol concentration of hepatic and gallbladder bile increased significantly. The molar ratios of bile acid/cholesterol and phospholipid/cholesterol decreased in hepatic and gallbladder bile. The predominant bile acid shifted from cholic acid, 78% of the total bile acids, to chenodeoxycholic acid, 60% of the total. In common bile duct cannulated animals the high cholesterol diet produced increased secretion of cholesterol by the liver and increased bile flow.In animals fed the egg yolk diet for 2 months, cholesterol-4-(14)C was included in the daily diet for the next 4 months to establish an isotopic steady state. At autopsy the mean specific activity of cholesterol was similar in serum, liver, hepatic bile, gallbladder bile, and gallstones. Thus the cholesterol of gallstones apparently equilibrated constantly throughout the study and was not sequestrated as a static pool.The high cholesterol, egg yolk diet caused the secretion of an "abnormal bile" which led to precipitation of cholesterol from micellar solution. The increased bile cholesterol relative to bile acid and phospholipid favored stone formation. This dietary induction of cholesterol gallstones provided a unique animal model, in part but not completely analogous to human cholelithiasis.     

Percutaneous transhepatic gallstone dissolution with methyl tert-butyl ether in complicated stone diagnosis and gallbladder anomalies

In a total of 117 successfully punctured patients with gallbladder stones that were to be treated with methyl tert-butyl ether, 11 showed shell-like structured concrements on the CT scan. In 2 patients, pigment stones and very old concrements were suspected. In these 13 patients solitary stones dissolved in 2.9 hours, multiple stones in 10.8 hours, which corresponds to the treatment time of the total group. In 4 patients we diagnosed cholesterol stones, but dissolution was very slow, suggesting that the stones were covered with pigment. In 21 patients we found marked gallbladder anomalies, such as extreme septation, two-chamber gallbladders, gallbladder diverticula with a wedged stone, or gallbladders in which the fundus was positioned cranially. In these patients puncture time was prolonged by 25%. However, since in all patients the stones dissolved in the same time as in the total group (solitary stones; 3.1 hours: multiple stones: 10.4 hours) and since in 33% there was also sludge in the gallbladder, shape variants of the gallbladder obviously have no influence on the stone type. Whether they induce recurrent stones more often than normal gallbladders cannot be assessed at present. Shape variants of the gallbladder and layered stones on CT scan, however, do not represent a contraindication to MTBE therapy.     

胆囊结石并发急性胰腺炎的超声诊断及价值

目的：探讨胆囊结石并发急性胰腺炎的超声诊断及价值。方法：采用超声检查32例胆囊结石并发急性胰腺炎患者,观察胆囊内结石大小与数量并进行比较,同时观察胰腺大小、形态、实质回声及周围情况。结果：胆囊结石中81.1%（26/32）为多发性结石,其中81%（21/26）为直径〈0.9cm的小结石。结论：多发性且直径小的的胆囊结石患者并发急性胰腺炎的发病率明显增高。超声检查胆囊结石可为临床提供急性胰腺炎的可能病因,并为胆囊结石患者选择性地施行胆囊切除术提供影像学诊断依据。     

Calcium in human gallbladder bile.

Biliary calcium is believed to be of great importance in gallstone pathogenesis. These studies were therefore performed to determine if quantitative and/or qualitative differences in calcium are present in gallbladder bile from patients with and without gallstones. Bile was obtained by direct gallbladder aspiration from 68 obese patients undergoing elective gastric bypass surgery. Forty-five patients had no evidence of gallstones or sludge, 18 had cholesterol gallstones, and five had black pigment stones. Gallbladder bile was also obtained from 27 nonobese patients undergoing elective cholecystectomy (19 cholesterol; eight black pigment gallstones). For all patients, total calcium ranged from 1.50 to 16.44 mmol/L (mean: 6.05 +/- 0.31 mmol/L); free Ca++ ion ranged from 0.53 to 2.83 mmol/L (mean: 1.28 +/- 0.05 mmol/L). Considerable overlap was observed between obese and nonobese subjects and between patients with and without gallstones. For all patient groups, calcium, Ca++, and bound calcium increased linearly with increasing concentrations of bile salt. No significant differences in the slopes of these relationships were observed with obesity or gallstones. In contrast, free Ca++ ion was greater in gallbladder bile from gallstone patient groups throughout the entire range of bile salt. We hypothesize that this observed increase in Ca++ resulted from increased Gibbs-Donnan forces and excess gallbladder mucin present within the gallbladder bile of patients with gallstones.     

不同性别人群的冠心病主要危险因素分析

目的分析冠心病(CHD)主要危险因素年龄、高血压、高脂血症、糖尿病在男性和女性人群中的差别。方法经冠状动脉造影检查确诊的冠心病患者608例,其中合并高血压350例,高血脂158例,糖尿病222例。分析男女冠心病发病的年龄及危险因素在不同年龄段的分布。结果冠心病发病平均年龄男性组(55.2±9.9)岁与女性组(64.5±10.1)岁比较有差异(P=0.04),在<50岁亚组中,男性较女性发病率高(P<0.05)。女性组危险因素中高血压病、糖尿病、高脂血症的发生率均明显高于男性组(均P<0.05)。女性高血压在70~79岁亚组较60~69岁亚组下降;糖尿病在男性和女性70~79岁亚组较60~69岁亚组都下降;高脂血症在男性70~79岁亚组构成比下降。冠心病人高血压和糖尿病在男性和女性各年龄亚组构成比差异有统计学意义(P<0.01);高血脂年龄构成比差异无统计学意义(P=0.134)。结论年龄、高血压、高脂血症、糖尿病在男性和女性冠心病患者中有差别。     

Risk factors for gestational diabetes in black population

In a long-term longitudinal study of gestational diabetes mellitus in Black women, risk factors that were identified were age, obesity, a family history of diabetes, and the presence of hypertension. Poor predictors were a history of a previous large-for-date infant, parity, and age at first pregnancy. The prevalence of smooth muscle and nuclear autoantibodies was higher in gestational diabetic subjects. Gestational diabetic subjects who required insulin for glycemic control were more obese, had a lower frequency of the Bf-F phenotype and a higher frequency of the Bf-F1 phenotype, and had a lower frequency of the type 2 allele at the polymorphic locus adjacent to the insulin gene. Restriction-fragment-length polymorphisms flanking the insulin and apolipoprotein A-I and C-III genes, although not associated with gestational diabetes mellitus, may be associated with hyperlipidemia and subsequent atherosclerosis.     

Factors associated with clinical gallbladder disease in a Canadian Indian population

Among the Cree-Ojibwa Indians in the subarctic boreal forest of northern Manitoba and Ontario, a high prevalence of clinical gallbladder disease (18.5% among women aged 20-64) was observed. Of a variety of sociodemographic, physiological, anthropometric, and lifestyle factors, increased age and serum triglycerides, and reduced total cholesterol were found to be independent associated factors on multivariate analysis whereas diabetic status, obesity, and a central fat distribution were not. Previous studies in this population have indicated that the Indians also suffer from a high burden of obesity, diabetes, and gallbladder cancer, thus lending support to the hypothesis that genetic predisposition to a constellation of metabolic disorders is perhaps universal among New World aboriginal peoples.     

双源CT双能量成像在体分析胆囊结石成分研究

目的 探讨双源CT（DSCT）双能量成像分析体内胆囊结石成分的应用价值。方法 对200例胆囊结石患者于胆囊切除术前行DSCT双能量扫描,分析80 kV、140 kV图像对胆囊阴性结石的检出率。以显微红外光谱分析结果为判断结石成分的金标准,比较不同成分结石间80 kV图像CT值、140 kV图像CT值、CT值差值及CT值比值的差异;以ROC曲线评价不同指标鉴别胆固醇与非胆固醇成分胆囊结石的效能。结果 80 kV图像、140 kV图像及联合应用80 kV和140 kV图像对胆囊阴性结石的检出率分别为88.89%（80/90）、76.67%（69/90）和100%（90/90）。胆固醇成分结石的80 kV 图像CT值、140 kV图像 CT值、CT值差值、CT值比值均低于胆红素钙及罕见成分结石（P均<0.05）,胆红素钙与罕见成分结石间差异均无统计学意义（P均>0.05）。以80 kV图像 CT值62 HU和CT值差值-2 HU为临界值,诊断胆固醇与非胆固醇成分胆囊结石的敏感度和特异度均为100%。结论 DSCT双能量成像可准确鉴别胆固醇结石与非胆固醇成分胆囊结石。     

乌鲁木齐地区非酒精性脂肪肝患病率及危险因素分析

目的探讨新疆乌鲁木齐地区非酒精性脂肪肝(NAFLD)的患病特点及危险因素。方法 2574例体检者资料为研究对象,将研究对象分为NAFLD组和非NAFLD组,分析两组的生化指标及相关疾病患病率,采用多因素Logistic回归分析评价NAFLD的危险因素。结果本研究NAFLD总患病率为36.13%,在60~69岁组最高,男性患病率高于女性。NAFLD组的年龄、体质量指数、舒张压、收缩压、腰围、臀围、腰臀比、丙氨酸氨基转移酶(ALT)、尿酸(UA)、空腹血糖(FBG)、糖化血红蛋白、总胆固醇(TC)、三酰甘油(TG)及低密度脂蛋白胆固醇(LDL-C)值均较非NAFLD组高。NAFLD组高TG、高TC、低高密度脂蛋白胆固醇、高LDL-C、高血压、空腹血糖调节受损或糖尿病、肥胖、高尿酸血症及肝功能异常的患病率高于非NAFLD组。多因素Logistic回归结果显示性别、年龄、SBP、ALT、FBG、UA、TG及LDL-C与NAFLD密切相关,为NAFLD的危险因素。结论乌鲁木齐地区NAFLD的患病率较高,较前有增加趋势;与肥胖、血脂异常、血糖代谢紊乱、高血压、高尿酸血症等多种代谢紊乱相关。     

Cholesterol gallstone pathogenesis: a study of potential nucleating agents for cholesterol crystal formation in bile

Cholesterol monohydrate crystal formation was measured quantitatively in model bile solutions, which were supersaturated with cholesterol, by a radiochemical method and qualitatively in human gallbladder bile by polarizing microscopy. Various agents, which have been postulated to act as nucleating factors for cholesterol crystal and gallstone formation, were added to bile and their effect on the appearance of cholesterol crystals was determined. These agents included calcium salts found in gallstones (calcite, aragonite, apatite, bilirubinate), Escherichia coli bacteria, pigment residues from cholesterol gallstones, bilirubin and several mucin preparations. Human gallbladder bile, which was collected from patients with and without cholesterol gallstones, was also mixed with model bile to examine whether nucleating or anti-nucleating factors were present. None of the agents tested markedly and consistently promoted cholesterol monohydrate crystal formation in model or human bile, except seed crystals of cholesterol monohydrate which were used as a control. Human gallbladder bile from obese patients without gallstones delayed the appearance of cholesterol crystals in model bile solutions, whereas gallbladder bile from gallstone patients did not. These results do not provide experimental support for the hypothesis that calcium salts and pigment material found in gallstones, or gallbladder mucin at concentrations less than 10 mg/ml, act as nucleating agents for cholesterol crystal and stone formation. The difference between gallbladder biles from patients with and without gallstones in their propensity to form cholesterol crystals may be due to the presence of an anti-nucleating factor in normal bile.     

Studies on the Pathogenesis of Pigment Gallstones in Hemolytic Anemia: DESCRIPTION AND CHARACTERISTICS OF A MOUSE MODEL

The pathogenesis of hemolysis-induced gallstones was studied in mice with a hereditary hemolytic disease called normoblastic anemia (genotype nb/nb) and in their normal controls (genotype +/+). Infrared spectroscopy demonstrated that spontaneously formed gallstones from nb/nb mice were nearly identical to stones from patients with chronic hemolysis as the result of sickle cell disease, and both mouse and human stones strikingly resembled synthetic calcium bilirubinate. 57% of 115 nb/nb mice, but none of 109 control mice, developed calcium bilirubinate pigment gallstones (P < 0.001). The incidence of luminal gallstones in nb/nb mice was both sex and age dependent. Female nb/nb mice formed stones twice as frequently as male nb/nb mice (P < 0.001). Before 6 mo of age neither sex developed stones, but thereafter the incidence of stones increased with age. Neither hematocrit, reticulocyte count, nor total plasma bilirubin values, were useful in distinguishing between nb/nb mice with or without gallstones. In gallbladder bile, nb/nb mice with gallstones had higher concentrations of hydrogen ion, total bilirubin, calcium, and bile acids than nb/nb mice without stones. Although total unconjugated bilirubin was similar in both nb/nb groups, the ionized fraction of unconjugated bilirubin was higher in bile from nb/nb mice without stones than those with stones. In nb/nb mice, neutral mucin plugs and pigment concentrations were observed histologically in the glandular crypts of the gallbladder in 33% of nb/nb mice without stones and in 80% of nb/nb mice with luminal stones. This suggested that luminal pigment stone disease in mice with hemolysis may be preceded by microscopic precipitation of calcium bilirubinate in the glandular crypts of the gallbladder. These precipitates may then migrate into the lumen and grow by accretion.     

Biliary lipid composition in patients with cholesterol and pigment gallstones and gallstone-free subjects: deoxycholic acid does not contribute to formation of cholesterol gallstones

BACKGROUND: Four main disturbances have been attributed to cholesterol gallstone disease: hypersecretion of cholesterol from the liver with cholesterol supersaturation in bile; disturbed motility with defective absorption and secretion by the gallbladder; increased crystallisation of cholesterol in the gallbladder bile; and slow intestinal transit with increased amount of deoxycholic acid in the bile acid pool. We aimed to evaluate the biliary lipid composition in a large series of gallstone patients, with emphasis on the amount of deoxycholic acid and with respect to number of stones, compared to gallstone free subjects. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Bile was sampled during operations through puncture of the gallbladder from 145 cholesterol gallstone patients, 23 patients with pigment stones and 87 gallstone free patients undergoing cholecystectomy. Biliary lipid composition, cholesterol saturation, bile acid composition, nucleation time and cholesterol crystals were analysed. RESULTS: The patients with cholesterol gallstones showed higher molar percentage of cholesterol, lower total biliary lipid concentration, higher cholesterol saturation, shorter nucleation time and higher proportion of crystals in bile than the other groups. The nucleation time was significantly shorter in multiple cholesterol gallstone patients, but this was not due to higher cholesterol saturation. Male cholesterol gallstone patients showed higher cholesterol levels, lower total biliary lipid concentration, and higher cholesterol saturation in bile than female patients. There was no difference in biliary content of deoxycholic acid, but significantly lower content of cholic acid in gallstone patients compared to gallstone free patients. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that deoxycholic acid does not contribute to gallstone formation in cholesterol gallstone patients. The short nucleation time in patients with multiple cholesterol stones is not due to higher cholesterol saturation.