A study presented at the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases annual meeting revealed that recent data show a decrease in hospitalizations due to gallstone disease despite the concurrent rise in obesity.

The abstract was presented by Eleni Ramphos from Stanford University.

By investigating the long-term trends surrounding hospitalization for gallstone disease in the United States over the past 2 decades, this study aimed to come to a better understanding of obesity’s role as a risk factor.

Approximately 10-20% of Americans are living with gallstone disease. While some of the known risk factors are uncontrollable— including genetics—other factors, such as obesity, are potentially modifiable. The impact of rising obesity in America and its metabolic consequences on gallstone disease incidence trends is currently unknown.

Using 2014 hospital discharge data available from the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database, the researchers identified patients with ICD9 codes for gallstone disease as a primary diagnosis, along with records of relevant procedures, such as cholecystectomy and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography. Records that noted known hepatobiliary cancers and HIV infection were excluded.

The investigators found that the age-adjusted hospitalization incident rate for gallstone disease among women was 135.85 per 100,000 in 2014 compared to 219.14 in 1998. For men, the incident rate in 2014 was 82.88 per 100,000 compared to 114.57 in 1998.

While the prevalence of certain modifiable risk factors for gallstone disease, such as elevated body mass index and hyperlipidemia, have increased in the United States over time, the data do not indicate a corresponding increase in gallstone disease hospitalization or cholecystectomy. The researchers also reflected that the substantial decrease in hospital utilization for gallstone disease and cholecystectomy can likely be attributed to the rapid adoption of cholecystectomies performed in ambulatory settings.

—Allison Casey

Reference:

Ramphos E, et al. Gallstone disease in the U.S.: is there an impact of obesity and its metabolic consequences? Presented at: the American Association for the Study of Liver Disease annual meeting. November 12-15. Virtual.