Obese kids at higher risk of gallstones

Washington - Children who are overweight or obese face an increased risk of having gallstones, a new study has claimed.

Researchers of the new study found that children and adolescents who were overweight were twice as likely to have gallstone disease as compared to children and adolescents who had a normal body mass index.

Those who were moderately obese were four times as likely to have gallstones and those who were extremely obese were six times as likely to have gallstones.

The study was based on information in the electronic health records of more than 510,000 children ages 10 to 19, from 2007 through 2009, who were members of Kaiser Permanente Southern California.

The size and diversity of this population-based study allowed researchers to explore racial and ethnic disparities. Hispanic youth were more likely to have gallstones than youth of other races and ethnicities.

“Although gallstones are relatively common in obese adults, gallstones in children and adolescents have been historically rare,” Corinna Koebnick, lead author of the study from Kaiser Permanente Southern California Department of Research and Evaluation, said.

“These findings add to an alarming trend—youth who are obese or extremely obese are more likely to have diseases we normally think of as adult conditions,” Koebnick said.

Researchers found a stronger association between obesity and gallstones in girls than in boys.

Girls who were obese and extremely obese were six and eight times more likely, respectively, to have gallstones than girls who were underweight or of normal weight, while obese and severely obese boys were more than twice and three times as likely to have gallstones as their normal or underweight counterparts.

Gallstone disease is a major health, symptoms of which include recurrent abdominal pain and nausea, although many people with gallstones have no symptoms.

It can block the passage of bile into the intestine, which in turn can cause severe damage or infection in the gallbladder, liver, or pancreas and, if left untreated, the condition can be fatal.

“The high rate of gallstones in obese children and adolescents may surprise pediatricians because gallstone disease is generally regarded as an adult disorder.

Since obesity is so common, pediatricians must learn to recognize the characteristic symptoms of gallstones,” George Longstreth, senior study author, said.

The study has been published in the Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition.