A 52-year-old woman with long-standing right upper quadrant discomfort has a plain abdominal radiograph followed by CT. Imaging shows a rim of curvilinear calcification completely outlining the gallbladder wall, with no intraluminal gas. Which diagnosis is associated with an increased risk of gallbladder carcinoma?
- A Porcelain gallbladder ✓
- B Emphysematous cholecystitis
- C Milk of calcium bile
- D Calcified hepatic hydatid cyst
Explanation
Porcelain gallbladder is intramural calcification of the chronically inflamed gallbladder wall, seen as a curvilinear rim on plain films and CT. It carries an increased risk of gallbladder carcinoma, historically quoted around 10 to 20 percent, so cholecystectomy is advised even when asymptomatic. Emphysematous cholecystitis shows gas within the wall rather than calcification, and milk of calcium bile produces layering dense bile inside the lumen without wall calcification.
Reference: Grainger and Allison's Diagnostic Radiology, 7th ed.
High-yield for: NEET PGINI-CETNExTFMGEUSMLEPLABMRCP
Written and medically reviewed by the StethoPrep medical team.