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. 2024 Jan 5:17:21-27.
doi: 10.2147/IJGM.S434877. eCollection 2024.

Medical Therapies to Conquer Surgical Diseases: Gallstone Disease May Be the Next Frontier

Affiliations

Medical Therapies to Conquer Surgical Diseases: Gallstone Disease May Be the Next Frontier

Nadine Horneck et al. Int J Gen Med. .

Abstract

Over the past half century, diseases that were predominantly treated surgically have transitioned to less invasive medical therapies. Such diseases that are now effectively treated with medicine are (1) peptic ulcer disease (PUD), (2) coronary artery disease (CAD), and (3) gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs). Likewise, gallstone disease may soon follow this trend. Currently, the gold standard treatment of symptomatic gallstones is laparoscopic cholecystectomies. Though one of the most common surgeries in the United States, certain cases of acute and gangrenous cholecystitis can be some of the most difficult surgeries to perform. Advancements in neutrophil extracellular trap (NET) inhibitor medical therapies will alter gallstone disease management and the mainstream role of surgical interventions. This focus on less invasive therapies will greatly impact the quality of patient care, financial obligations, and even resident training opportunities.

Keywords: NET inhibitor; drug discovery; gallstone disease; invasive surgical therapy; medical therapies.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Timeline of troublesome diseases that have shifted to medical therapy treatment.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Trends in Statin Use Among US Adults from 1999–2012.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Elective duodenal ulcer surgery mean rates per million resident population per year in the Trent Region, UK.
Figure 4
Figure 4
A Visualization of Neutrophil Extracellular Traps with Chromatin, Histones, and Protein Components.

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