Gall Bladder Function after Pancreatectomy

Abstract

In the course of an extended series of observations on depancrea-tized dogs a number of questions arose in the interpretation of the data. Many other changes in body economy besides loss of insulin and loss of juice in the intestine have to be considered. Some questions have arisen concerning altered biliary function.

The following experiments were performed in order to determine the functional activity of the gall-bladder in dogs after complete pancreatectomy. For this purpose the dye method of Graham, Cole and Copher 1 was employed in 3 dogs which had been depancreatized 173, 242 and 287 days respectively. The animals were kept on a diet consisting essentially of cooked lean meat and glucose, supplemented by insulin.

The experiments were conducted in the following manner: 0.15 gm. of sodium tetraiodophenolphthalein (iodeikon) per kilo body weight was injected intravenously. Eighteen hours afterward an X-ray of the gall bladder was taken. Then the dogs were given their ration of meat and glucose to which 40 gm. of beef suet was added, and insulin was injected. Two hours and 5 hours after the feeding cholecystograms were made to study the emptying time of the gall bladder.

The results were as follows: 18 hours after the injection of the dye, well defined cholecystograms were obtained in all of the dogs, demonstrating good concentration. After feeding, the shadow of the gall bladder diminished in size and density or disappeared completely, indicating partial or complete removal of the dye. These results are well within the range of the variations found in the functional activity of the gall bladder in normal dogs and demonstrate that removal of the pancreas does not alter the function of the gall bladder as determined by the dye method.