A variant of the double gallbladder. A possible cause of cholelithiasis?

Congenital duplication of the gallbladder is a rare anatomical malformation, which is usually discovered as an incidental finding during cholecystectomy. We report a case of a double gallbladder in a 45-year-old woman, which was discovered during laparoscopic cholecystectomy for symptomatic cholelithiasis. As it was not possible to identify the anatomical structures safely, the procedure was converted to open cholecystectomy. Inspection of the resected gallbladder showed that it consisted of 2 chambers with separate cystic ducts, which communicated through an ostium. Both chambers contained multiple gallstones. The inadequate drainage of the second chamber could be considered as a predisposing factor for the development of cholelithiasis in this case.