[Calculi of the bile ducts--a problem for the elderly? Observations from the surgical viewpoint].

Age alone does not increase the risk in biliary surgery. However, cholelithiasis in the elderly is often associated with an increased frequency of acute cholecystitis and cholangitis due to stone obstruction. The proportion of elderly people in the world is still growing, therefore, we can expect to see increasingly more complications of gallstones. Elective surgery for gallstone disease in all age groups is to be preferred to a policy of waiting for stone complications with the resultant risk of higher mortality and postoperative morbidity of emergency surgery.