Acute Calculous Cholecystitis With Sinus Bradycardia: Cope's Sign Encountered.
Level 4 - case-series / case-control
Single human case report
PubMed 35165631 · doi:10.7759/cureus.21187
What was done
Case report describing a 53-year-old male presenting with diffuse abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and sinus bradycardia on electrocardiogram. Imaging confirmed acute calculous cholecystitis, and a cardiac workup was performed.
What was found
The abstract reports no numerical values for heart rate or clinical parameters. The cardiac workup was unremarkable, and the patient's sinus bradycardia resolved following the management of acute calculous cholecystitis.
Why it matters
Highlights Cope's sign (the cardio-biliary reflex), demonstrating that acute gallbladder pathology can manifest with vagally mediated arrhythmias that resolve once the cholecystitis is treated.
Limits
Single-patient case report (n = 1) without a control group. The abstract does not report specific numerical values (such as initial and resolved heart rates) or details of the specific medical or surgical interventions used.
Cited by
- context Gallbladder congestion is associated with heart palpitations, and TUDCA can help alleviate this symptom.