Parasites and Biliary stones

Gall stone disease remains one of the most common medical problems leading to surgical intervention. The risk factors predisposing to gallstone formation include obesity, diabetes mellitus, estrogen and pregnancy, hemolytic diseases, and cirrhosis . It is important to remember that gallstones can lead to a variety of other complications including choledocholithiasis. About 15% of patients with gallstones have choledocholithiasis. Stones in the common duct usually originate in the gallbladder but may also form de novo in the bile duct. Stones from gall bladder which migrate up to the intra-hepatic ducts leading to formation of Hepatolithiasis.Helminthic invasion of the human biliary tract is a prominent medical and surgical problem especially in tropical and subtropical areas where these parasites are endemic. Helminthic infestation may affect the liver and/or the biliary tract either during passage of worms through these structures or because these organs serve as their natural habitat. The parasitic infestations affecting the biliary tract including the nematode Ascaris lumbricoides, the trematodes Opisthorchis viverrini and felineus, Clonorchis sinensis, Dicrocoeliasis and Fasciola hepatica, and the cestodes Echinococcus granulosus and multilocularis, also some protozoa can cause biliary tract disease as Cryptosporidium, and Giardiasis.