Prevalence of Postcholecystectomy Symptoms: Long Term Outcome after Open versus Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy

Objectives: After cholecystectomy, a certain number of patients continue to suffer from abdominal symptoms or develop such symptoms postoperatively. The aim of this study was to compare the prevalence of postcholecystectomy symptoms (PCSs) between open and laparoscopic cholecystectomy and to find out and investigate the cause of PCSs. Material and Methods: This study was conducted in MB Government Hospital, Udaipur on 100 patients undergoing open or laparoscopic cholecystectomy for symptomatic cholelithiasis. Preoperative and postoperative symptoms of 50 Patients (37 females), aged 20 to 79 years, who underwent open cholecystectomy, were prospectively compared questionnaire with those of 50 patients (39 females) aged 16 to 75 years, who underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Patients were followed up for an average of 11 to 12 months. Results: There was no statistically significant difference in prevalence of postcholecystectomy symptoms after open cholecystectomy compared with laparoscopic cholecystectomy (26% v/s 14%, P = 0.134). Conclusions: There is no significant difference in prevalence of post-cholecystectomy symptoms after open cholecystectomy compared with laparoscopic cholecystectomy.