Gallstones Causes
What causes gallstones?
Gallstones can have very different causes.
During the formation of cholesterol gallstones, various internal (endogenous) and external (exogenous) factors interact together. Prerequisite is the supersaturation of bile with cholesterol. Cholesterol is not soluble and therefore must always be surrounded by plenty of bile acids and phospholipids. Normally, the ratio of bile acids to phospholipids to cholesterol in the bile is 60:30:10. If this ratio is disturbed, the cholesterol is clumped and therefore forms gallstones.
A disturbed ratio of cholesterol to bile acids, which favors the formation of gallstones, can have many causes. Such a imbalance occurs, for example,if there is too much cholesterol or too few bile acids. Then sometimes cholesterol gallstones are formed.
Various hereditary or acquired diseases may be the causes for gallstones. Pigment gallstones arise, for example in chronic hemolysis, in which more blood is broken down. This is especially the case in much bilirubin as a breakdown product of hemoglobin, which is sensitive to gallstones. In this case, very much bilirubin falls as a breakdown product of hemoglobin, that is sensitive to gallstones.
Many other factors play a role in gallstone formation. For example there is the so-called "5F" rule:
Article From: Gallstonessymptoms.net
Created: 2011-12-02
Last update: 2012-02-09