10 Gallstones Symptoms
Gallstones are small stones that form in our gallbladder. They are usually made of cholesterol crystals that accumulate and less frequently they can be made of pigments like bilirubin as well. This condition is medically known as cholelithiasis and it affects over 20 million people in the US1Gallstones (Cholelithiasis). Author: Douglas M. Heuman - https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/175667-overview#a5. Women are more likely to develop gallstones than men. Among the most common risk factors associated with this condition are: being overweight, having a family history of cholelithiasis, taking oral contraceptives, diabetes, and losing a lot of weight during a short period of time.
During the early stages of the disease, as the stones start to form, it usually produces no symptoms whatsoever. Eventually, the gallstones will cause the symptoms that we are about to describe and if the condition is left untreated it may lead to complications like bladder inflammation (cholecystitis), pancreatitis, and infection of the biliary tract (cholangitis).
