Calcium carbonate in human gallstones and total CO2 in bile.

Measurement of total CO2 concentrations in bile from patients undergoing cholecystectomy because of gallstones has shown that the presence of calcium carbonate in the stones can be associated with a raised total CO2 concentration in the common duct bile. In bile from functioning and poorly-functioning gallbladders, total CO2 was nearly always related to pH irrespective of stone composition.