BMJ 1995;311:1091-1092 (21 October)

Letters

Treatment of gall stones

Non-surgical treatments should not be dismissed

EDITOR,--In their review on the treatment of gall stones N Tait and J M Little are unnecessarily dismissive of treatments other than surgery.1 They are perhaps being deliberately provocative when suggesting that such treatments are for patients who are dissatisfied with the outcome of alternative (previously defined by the authors as "folk," herbal, or naturopathic) treatments.

We believe that the personal preference of the patient is an important consideration. Some patients prefer the quick and definitive answer of an operation, whereas others are unable to accept the necessary time off work, are afraid of surgical treatment, or prefer to avoid a scar for cosmetic reasons. Many are grateful to have the option of safe, pain free oral treatment in the form of bile acids.

While the authors point out that treatment to dissolve gall stones has a failure rate of 50%, they fail to . . . [Full text of this article]


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Relevant Article

Fortnightly Review: The treatment of gall stones
N Tait and J M Little
BMJ 1995 311: 99-105. [Abstract] [Full Text]

Rapid Responses:

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Patient's comments
Kathleen P McAnespie
bmj.com, 7 Aug 2003 [Full text]
Patients need authoritative information comparing standard western medicine to homeopathic alternatives
Terrill J Smith
bmj.com, 21 May 2005 [Full text]
Re: Patients need authoritative information comparing standard western medicine to homeopathic alternatives
Peter Morrell
bmj.com, 22 May 2005 [Full text]
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