Chemical composition of gallstone in Tibetans from Tibet Autonomous Region

Abstract

Objective To study the characteristics of gallstone composition in Tibetans. Methods Gallstone/gallbladder stone(GS) specimens were collected from 106 Tibetan patients in the Department of General Surgery of Tibet Autonomous Region People′s Hospital from January to June 2021. The contents of cholesterol, bilirubin, cholic acid and calcium, sulfur, iron and zinc in gallstone were determined by ultraviolet spectrophotometer and by inductively coupled plasma spectrometer. Results Among 106 cases of cholecystolithiasis, 8.49% (9 cases) were cholesterol gallstones with cholesterol content of 534(528,725)μg/mg; 19.81% (21 cases) were pigment stones, and the content of bile pigment was 320(311,413)μg/mg; 71.69% (76 cases) were other types of stones; At the same time, bile acid with different contents was detected in three types of stones, and the content of bile acid in other types of stones was 22(12,33)μg/mg; The content of calcium, zinc and sulfur in pigment stone was relatively high(P＜0.05), but the content of iron didn′t show had significant difference. Conclusions Gallstone ofTibetan people is mainlycomposed of other stones and pigment stones. Cholesterol stones only account for a small proportion, which is quite different from the composition profile from other parts of China. The content of calcium, sulfur and zinc in pigment stone is relatively high, and the content of calcium is the highest element.

Keywords

• tibet|gallbladder stone|stone composition