Gallstones are the most common of all gallbladder problems. The gender ratio of gallstone patients changes with age. Young women are between two and six times more likely to develop gallstones than men in the same age group. In patients over 50, the condition affects men and women with equal frequency. Definitions Gallstones can cause several different disorders.
Cholelithiasis is defined as the presence of gallstones within the gallbladder itself.
The stones in the duct may have been formed inside it or carried there from the gallbladder. These gallstones prevent bile from flowing into the duodenum. Ten percent of patients with gallstones have choledocholithiasis, which is sometimes called common-duct stones. Patients who don't develop infection usually recover completely from this disorder. Cholecystitis is a disorder marked by inflammation of the gallbladder.