Interesting information on Gall bladder stones

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Nonsurgical options

Your doctor may recommend one of the following treatments if surgery isn't the best option:

Bile salt tablets. These tablets dissolve cholesterol stones over a period of time. This treatment works best on small cholesterol stones. Many doctors prefer the medication ursodiol (Actigall) because it's one of the safest and seems to have the fewest side effects. Unfortunately, ursodiol is expensive, and its effects aren't permanent. Gallstones tend to recur within 10 years of treatment in half the people taking the drug. To prevent a recurrence, most people need to take ursodiol indefinitely.

Methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE). This medication is delivered through a catheter directly to your gallbladder. It can often dissolve cholesterol stones after 1 or 2 days of constant treatment. But it's used only when stones must be dissolved quickly and surgery is not an option. The procedure requires great skill and experience and must be used with caution. Following this therapy, you need to take oral medication to prevent the formation of more stones.

Sound wave therapy (extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy). This treatment uses high-frequency sound waves to break up gallstones. You then take ursodiol tablets to dissolve the fragments. Shock wave therapy works best on single stones that are less than a half-inch in diameter. If you have more than one stone, or your stone is large, you're probably not a good candidate for this treatment. And, as with other nonsurgical therapies, your gallstones are likely to return unless you take ursodiol indefinitely.

More information can be found on:

http://www.mayoclinic.com/

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