A histopathological study of the gallbladder, particularly a comparative study to the fetal gallbladder, in fifty-two biliary atresia patients, was done who had undergone the operation at Juntendo University Hospital. In cases of so-called uncorrectable type, very hypoplastic gallbladder which was similar to the fetal gallbladder at two to three monthsgestation was buried in narrow fissure of liver parenchyma. On the other hand, in correctable type, the gallbladder was well developed and appeared outside of liver parenchyma. Histological findings of the gallbladder in biliary atresia patients were divided into three groups. Group I (25%) showed almost normal. Group II (56%) showed flattened epithelium and disappeared folds. Group III (19%) showed no lumen and disappeared epithelium. The histological change of the gallbladder was severer, the size of the bile duct in the remnant of extra-hepatic bile ducts at porta hepatis was smaller (p<0.05). However, liver fibrosis and postoperative bile flow did not correlate with histological changes of gallbladder in biliary atresia.
