Sonographic Evaluation of the Gallbladder in Adult Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Abstract

Introduction and aim: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the most common non-communicable diseases worldwide. Diabetics with autonomic neuropathy tend to have larger gallbladder (GB) with poor contraction after fatty meals predisposing them to gallstones and cholecystitis. This may be prevented and treated if detected early using ultrasound. This study sonographically evaluated the GB in adults with type 2 diabetes and compared the findings with a non-diabetic age and sex-matched control group.Methods: In this case-control study, 120 patients with type 2 diabetes and 120 non-diabetic controls between the ages of 18 and 80 years at National Hospital Abuja had their GB evaluated after eight hours of overnight fast using B-mode ultrasound. The data were analyzed using IBM SPSS version 20.0 (Armonk, NY: IBM Corp.) and presented in tables.Result: There were 60 males and 60 females with mean ages of 53.3 and 52 years for the cases and controls, respectively. The average fasting gallbladder volume (FGBV) in diabetics (34.51 + 3.16cm 3 ) was higher than that of controls (27.17 + 1.25cm 3 ). Eleven (9.2%) diabetics had gallstone (GS), while none was detected in controls. The GB wall thickness was significantly higher in diabetics than in the controls (0.28 ± 0.06 cm vs 0.25 ± 0.04 cm).Conclusion: A significant proportion of type 2 diabetics had higher FGBV, GB wall thickness, and presence of gallstone compared to the non-diabetic controls. B-mode ultrasound is a very important non-invasive and accurate tool for detecting these changes early.

The association between volume of the gallbladder based on sonographic findings and demographical data in patients referred to Guilan cohort center, Iran

“…Hahms et al, found that gallbladder volume in diabetic patients was signi cantly greater compared with that of controls (19). Also, Ikhuoriah et al found that a signi cant proportion of type 2 diabetics had higher gallbladder volume, gallbladder wall thickness, and presence of gallstone compared to the non-diabetic controls (20). Similarly, Portincasa et al working in Italy were able to establish that patients with gallstone exhibit gallbladder motor dysfunction which manifested as increased fasting and postprandial residual gallbladder volume (21).…”