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Background: Acute cholecystitis is a common complication of gallstone disease. Although early laparoscopic cholecystectomy is recommended, some patients do not undergo early surgery and remain at risk of recurrent disease. This study investigated whether early cholecystectomy for recurrent cholecystitis is associated with higher complication rates versus first-time cholecystitis.

Methods: A retrospective population-based cohort study was conducted using data from the Swedish Registry of Gallstone Surgery. Patients undergoing early cholecystectomy for acute cholecystitis in Sweden between 1 January 2006, and 31 December 2020, were included. Patients with recurrent cholecystitis were compared to those with a first episode. The primary outcome was the total 30-day complication rate. Secondary outcomes included open surgery, prolonged surgery (≥ 120 minutes), bile duct injury, and specific complications such as intestinal injury, bleeding, reoperation, abscess, and 30-day mortality. Multivariable logistic regression was used to calculate odds ratios (OR), adjusting for age, sex, American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) grade, and time from admission to surgery as confounders.

Results: Among 34 925 patients, 3384 had recurrent cholecystitis and 31 541 had first-time cholecystitis. The recurrent cholecystitis group had a higher complication rate (20.2 versus 13.8%) and an increased risk of bile duct injury (OR 2.44; 95% confidence interval (c.i.) 1.67 to 3.56), intestinal perforation (OR 2.54; 95% c.i. 1.51 to 4.25), prolonged surgery (OR 1.64; 95% c.i. 1.53 to 1.67), and open surgery (OR 1.76; 95% c.i. 1.64 to 1.92). However, patients with recurrent cholecystitis were older and had a higher ASA grade.

Conclusion: Early cholecystectomy for recurrent cholecystitis is associated with increased complication rates compared with first-time cholecystitis. These findings support early surgical intervention during the first episode to reduce the risk of adverse outcomes associated with recurrent disease.