Objective To investigate the clinical effect of ultrasound-guided percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder drainage (PTGBD) in the treatment of acute cholecystitis.Methods A retrospective analysis was performed for the clinical data of 81 patients with acute cholecystitis who underwent ultrasound-guided PTGBD in General Hospital of Lanzhou Petrochemical Company from March 2013 to February 2016.The changes in related parameters after the placement of drainage tube were analyzed.The t-test was used for comparison of continuous data between groups.Results All the 81 patients underwent a successful one-time puncture.After the surgery,1 patient experienced tube dislodgement and 2 experienced obstructed bile drainage,while no patient experienced serious complications such as bleeding,bile leakage,and hemopneumothorax.Within 12 hours after surgery,there was a significant improvement in pain in the right upper quadrant and significant reductions in the major axis and radial width of the gallbladder (t =13.28 and 9.54,P =0.023 and 0.041),as well as significant reductions in white blood cell count and neutrophil count (t =8.70 and 8.03,P =0.028 and 0.034).Of all patients,38 achieved symptom remission after the placement of drainage tube and refused selective surgical treatment,and 43 underwent cholecystectomy within 3 months after surgery.Conclusion PTGBD is simple,convenient,visible,and safe and can effectively reduce patients' pain,increase the success rate of the treatment of acute cholecystitis,improve patients' clinical outcomes,and reduce the incidence of complications.It also provides the conditions of selective surgery for critically ill patients with acute cholecystitis,and therefore,it holds promise for clinical application.