Introduction: Pregnancy and the postpartum period are risk factors for developing biliary sludge, gallstones, and any of their complications.
Objective: To determine the prevalence, presentation, and consequences of cholestasis during pregnancy and postpartum in a referral hospital of Baja California Sur.
Material and methods: This was a retrospective, observational study that enrolled pregnant or postpartum patients diagnosed with gallstones with any presentation.
Results: 137 patients were included, with 22 ± 4 years of age; 33 were pregnant and 104 in the postpartum period. Only 14% of the group had a history of cholelithiasis, and overweight/obesity was observed in 66.7 and 66.3% of pregnant and postpartum patients, respectively (p = 0.94). Of pregnant patients, 33.3% presented with acute cholecystitis, a condition observed in 16.3% of the postpartum patients (p = 0.04). Pancreatitis and choledocholithiasis were slightly more common in pregnant women (21.23% vs. 19.2%; p = 0.56). There was no maternal mortality and one case of spontaneous abortion was exclusively observed.
Conclusions: It is a priority to diagnose and monitor cholelithiasis in pregnant women because the acute cases observed occurred more frequently, but choledocholithiasis and pancreatitis occurred similarly in both groups.