Gall Bladder Mucoceles: The Kiwi Inside

Gall bladder mucocele (GBM) may currently represent the most common indication for surgical management of extra-hepatic biliary tract disease in dogs. It has not yet been convincingly described in cats. The underlying lesion has been described as cystic mucosal hyperplasia. Hypersecretion of mucus progressively leads to an accumulation of gelatinous bile within the gall bladder lumen. Increased viscosity over a period of weeks or months leads to thick gelatinous material eventually occupying the entire lumen of the gall bladder and in some cases also being present in the common bile duct. This can in some cases lead to clinico-pathological signs consistent with extra-hepatic biliary obstruction. In other cases eventual gall bladder rupture may occur possibly secondary to increases in intracholic pressure and/or gall bladder wall infarction. This will lead to an initial localized and progressively more generalized bile peritonitis.