Once the stones are formed in the gallbladder, there is a very unlikely situation that they will dissolve completely. Most of the times, if the gallbladder stones have to come out of the body, they have to pass through important structures like the bile duct and the pancreatic duct, to reach the lumen of the intestine from where they can be excreted out. During the process they can cause severe abdominal pain and lead to complications like obstructive jaundice, cholangitis and pancreatitis. These complications are not only serious in nature, but they can be medically difficult to manage. Sometimes they may merit another intervention called ERCP to actually help to clear the stones from the bile duct. We would not recommend that the patient should have a situation that the stones are coming out of the gallbladder and passing out through the common bile duct. If the stones stay in the body for a long time, they are predisposed to develop such complications. In order to prevent these kind of complications and to provide a definitive cure it is important not just to remove the stones, but also the gallbladder and therefore the surgery is mandatory for patients who have been diagnosed to have gallstones. It can be done as early as possible in an acute setting, or it can be deferred if the patient does not have any symptoms to a point when the patient starts developing symptoms of abdominal pain or discomfort in the upper part of the abdomen.

Sometimes, the stone may block the tube connecting the gallbladder to the common bile duct. This may give rise to infection inside the gallbladder or severe distention of the gallbladder because of the blockage of the bile inside. This can lead to severe pain and infection of the gallbladder. This situation may also need an urgent surgery for the removal of the gallbladder.