# Case Report: Congenital gallbladder agenesis

**Authors:** Bo Gao, Xuefeng Bai, Rui Zhang

PMC · DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2026.1778733 · Frontiers in Medicine · 2026-01-30

## TL;DR

This case report highlights how MRI can accurately diagnose congenital gallbladder agenesis, preventing unnecessary surgeries.

## Contribution

The paper emphasizes the importance of MRI in diagnosing congenital gallbladder agenesis to avoid misdiagnosis.

## Key findings

- MRI successfully diagnosed congenital gallbladder agenesis preoperatively.
- Ultrasonography initially misdiagnosed the condition as gallbladder stones and atrophic cholecystitis.
- Using MRI prevented unnecessary surgical intervention in this case.

## Abstract

The congenital gallbladder agenesis presents a diagnostic challenge due to its atypical clinical features, often leading to misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis and ultimately unnecessary surgeries. The role of MRI in this condition cannot be overstated. We report a case where MRI preoperatively diagnosed congenital gallbladder agenesis. Initially, routine physical examination ultrasonography misdiagnosed the patient with a gallbladder full of stones and atrophic cholecystitis, leading the patient to seek surgical treatment and get admitted to the hospital. After admission, further abdominal MRI finally diagnosed congenital gallbladder agenesis, successfully avoiding unnecessary surgery. This case underscores the key clinical lesson of leveraging MRI to prevent unnecessary surgeries.

## Full-text entities

- **Diseases:** stones (MESH:D007669), gallbladder agenesis (MESH:C562564), atrophic cholecystitis (MESH:D002764)
- **Species:** Homo sapiens (human, species) [taxon 9606]

## Full text

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## Figures

2 figures with captions in the complete paper: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC12901319/full.md

## References

7 references — full list in the complete paper: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC12901319/full.md

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Source: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC12901319