Abstract
In the last 11 years (November 1989–December 2000), 5526 laparoscopic cholecystectomies were performed in a community residency training program. Two cases (0.04%) of remote complications secondary to spilled gallstones were identified. A 75-year-old woman presented with a sterile abscess in the abdominal wall containing gallstones 4 years and 4 months after an elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy. The second patient, a 43-year-old woman, presented with a subdiaphragmatic/subhepatic abscess containing gallstones. The abscess grew the same bacteria that were present 2 years and 3 months previously during a laparoscopic cholecystectomy for acute gangrenous cholecystitis. In both cases, pigmented gallstones were identified. Causes of gallstone spillage, means of prevention, and ways of managing this complication are discussed.
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