Inverse Association Between Plasma Cholesterol and Gallstone Disease

Background sociation between gallstone disease (gallstones or cholecystectomy) and plasma lipids was evaluated in 2,089 subjects who attended a private health care facility in Mexico City from August 1991 to August 1992. s rticipants provided data on their sociodemographic status, non–insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus diagnoses, alcohol consumption, and smoking habits; women also gave data regarding their obstetric-gynecologic histories. Ultrasounds of the liver and biliary tract were performed. Cholesterol levels, high-density lipoproteins cholesterol, and triglyceride plasma concentration were determined. s tudy shows a strong inverse association between gallstone disease and plasma cholesterol concentration, with OR = 0.61 (95% CI = 0.42–0.89) in the category of 181–239 mg/dL, and OR = 0.49 (95% CI = 0.32–0.77) in the group of 240 mg/dL or more, when compared to 180 mg/dL or less, after adjusting for the following risk factors: gender, age, and body mass index. sions results suggest an increment in the catabolic pool of cholesterol, reflected in lower levels of plasma cholesterol in subjects with gallstone disease.