Floating gallbladder: a questionable prelude to torsion: a case report

A 55-year-old woman had recurrent bouts of low substernal and epigastric pain radiating into the interscapular region. A hepatobiliary scan initially showed what was believed to be a dilated common bile duct and nonvisualization of the gallbladder. A delayed image obtained after having the patient move about revealed the presence of a filled gallbladder and normal common bile duct. The combination of recurrent pain with this scintigraphic picture may be representative of a floating gallbladder or an incomplete torsion with spontaneous detorsion. This case is presented to describe the scintigraphic appearance of a mobile gallbladder that may be prone to volvulus and to emphasize the importance of obtaining decubitus or oblique views at the end of a hepatobiliary study in selected cases of unusual findings.