Chronic Visceral Right Upper Quadrant Pain Without Gallstones

Patients with chronic visceral right upper quadrant pain without gallstones can be broadly categorized into two groups: patients with gallbladder dyskinesia, and patients with sphincter of Oddi dysfunction (SOD). Treating patients with these disorders is often challenging to clinicians due to the difficulty at arriving at a definite diagnosis, and the lack of efficacy of various treatment modalities. The only real treatment option for patients with gallbladder dyskinesia is cholecystectomy; however, the results are difficult to predict in an individual patient. Patients with SOD can be approached according to a classification that at least partially reflects the underlying pathophysiology. Patients with type I SOD have underlying papillary stenosis, and benefit from empiric sphincterotomy. Patients with type II SOD may have muscle spasm as predominant pathophysiology; this group of patients benefit from sphincterotomy only if increased sphincter pressure is demonstrated by sphincter of Oddi manometry. Patients with type III SOD may have visceral hyperalgesia; a trial of antidepressants or a therapeutic trial with botulinum toxin injection into the ampulla should be considered prior to more invasive endoscopic therapy.