A young woman with right upper quadrant pain

Patients with right upper quadrant pain are commonly encountered in the emergency department. The causes of right upper quadrant range from infection or inflammation to malignancy. Thus, prompt and accurate diagnoses are essential in the emergency department. However, vicarious excretion of contrast media via the gallbladder, presenting as right upper quadrant pain, has been rarely reported and is not well known. The present case is instructive because gallbladder opacification is often considered a pathologic condition in patients with right upper quadrant pain. Although vicarious excretion via the gallbladder is uncommon in patients with right upper quadrant pain, inaccurate or delayed diagnoses may prolong hospitalization and increase medical costs due to unnecessary and invasive diagnostic procedures.

Gallbladder Visualization on CT Shortly after Angiography with Ioxaglate

Thirty-five patients underwent CT examination 15 to 30 min after abdominal angiography with ioxaglate. The gallbladder was visualized in 12 patients in the absence of clinical evidence of renal impairment. Gallbladder opacification on CT examinations shortly after angiography shows that the hepatobiliary tract is important in the excretion of ioxaglate.