The diagnosis of acute cholecystitis in patients undergoing early laparoscopic cholecystectomy in a community hospital.

Background: Early laparoscopic cholesyctectomy is the procedure of choice for acute cholecystitis; however, the diagnosis of acute cholecystitis in a community hospital setting is not always a simple matter.

Methods: A retrospective review of 70 patients who have been admitted through the A&E department with the symptomatic gall bladder stones between July 2002 and May 2003.

Results: To diagnose acute cholecystitis, as a single test, the sensitivity and the predictive value of the clinical-based diagnosis were 72.