The surgical department of our hospital, the majority of whose patients consist of farmers and their families, treated 100 cases of the diseases of gall -duct and of pancreas in the past 7 years, and studied their causation, post -operative troubles, etc.
They were classified as: 1) cholelitiasis, 2) cases whose major troubles consisting of gall-duct passage obstruction caused by the pathological changes at the head of pancreas or at papilla duodeni, 3) cholangitis, 4) round worm penetration, 5) dyskinesia, 6) swelling of the peripylic lymph nodes, etc. In half of these cases no stone was pre-sent. Changes in the pancreas and at the papilla duodeni seem to require special attention. In many cases of acute pancreatitis and pancreasnecrosis, pancreasenzyme was found in high concentration in gall-bladders; the fact made the author assume that repeated inflammation might cause cholangitis.
Recurrence and post-operative troubles occurred to 17% of the cases with stones and to 19% of those without stones. Accurate diagnosis and application of appropriate treat-ment worked out on the correct understanding of the cause are most important for the cases in which no stone is present.