Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Book

Emphysematous Cholecystitis

Andrew Kowalski  1 , Sarang Kashyap  2 , Christopher Pfeifer  3
In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2025 Jan.
.
Affiliations
Free Books & Documents
Book

Emphysematous Cholecystitis

Andrew Kowalski et al.
Free Books & Documents

Excerpt

Emphysematous cholecystitis is a fulminant variety of acute cholecystitis that differs in its pathology and epidemiology from cholecystitis induced by gallstones. The characteristic feature of this sinister variant of cholecystitis is the presence of gas in the lumen and wall of the gallbladder. The presence of gas may be detected elsewhere in the biliary tract or adjacent structures in addition to gas in the gallbladder wall. Emphysematous cholecystitis occurs in about 1% of all cases of acute cholecystitis but carries significantly higher morbidity and mortality. Individuals most susceptible to emphysematous cholecystitis are people with diabetes mellitus and those with a weak immune system.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Disclosure: Andrew Kowalski declares no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies.

Disclosure: Sarang Kashyap declares no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies.

Disclosure: Christopher Pfeifer declares no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies.

References

    1. Rosenberg AA, Cherry-Bukowiec JR, Li SH, Napolitano LM. Emphysematous cholecystitis. Surg Infect (Larchmt) 2013 Oct;14(5):483-5. - PubMed
    1. Ohtani Y, Tanaka Y, Tsukui M, Goto K, Moriya H, Tobita K, Sekka T, Saito Y, Makuuchi H, Tajima T, Mitomi T. Acute emphysematous cholecystitis associated with pneumobilia: a case report. Tokai J Exp Clin Med. 1996 Feb;21(1):33-6. - PubMed
    1. Tögel H, Sommer P. [Emphysematous cholecystitis (author's transl)]. MMW Munch Med Wochenschr. 1981 Apr 24;123(17):691-4. - PubMed
    1. Huber T, Kübler R. [Acute emphysematous cholecystitis]. Helv Chir Acta. 1979 Aug;46(3):477-81. - PubMed
    1. Mentzer RM, Golden GT, Chandler JG, Horsley JS. A comparative appraisal of emphysematous cholecystitis. Am J Surg. 1975 Jan;129(1):10-5. - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources