Modified subtotal cholecystectomy: a procedure for the difficult gall bladder

Modified subtotal cholecystectomy involves removal of the gall bladder after circumferential division of the neck. Either the impacted stone or the surgeons finger was used as a guide to identify the neck. The stump cavity in the neck is obliterated with interrupted sutures to prevent recurrent stone formation. Indications for this procedure are obscure anatomy, due either to the severe inflammation in acute cholecystitis or dense adhesions in the small fibrosed gall bladder. The decision to perform modified subtotal cholecystectomy is taken during the operation. Forty three patients (14%) underwent this procedure during the period between August 85 and April 90. Out of 289 cholecystectomies performed seven were emergency and thirty-six were early cholecystectomies. With the increasing trend towards urgent and early cholecystectomy in acute cholecystitis the author has found this to be a safe and definitive procedure.