Diabetes modifies by its consequences the course of different diseases. Objective: In the submitted work the authors compare the course of acute cholecystitis in diabetic and non-diabetic subjects. Method: The authors evaluated in a retrospective study a group of 246 patients whom they operated on account of acute cholecystitis. The group comprised 44 (18%) diabetics and 202 (82%) non-diabetic subjects. They compared the two groups in some selected parameters. The significance of differences was evaluated by statistical methods. Results: Significant differences between the groups were found in the pathomorphological finding on the gallbladder, in the incidence of acute cholangitis, comorbidity and early infection to the disadvantage of diabetics. Conclusion: The clinical course of acute cholecystitis in diabetics may be masked which is often the reason of inadequate therapeutic radical measures and of subsequent risks of the development of serious perioperative complications. Despite the higher comorbidity in the diabeticgroup the perioperative course in the two groups was comparable if early surgery and adequate preoperative preparation were provided.

        Key words: acute cholecystitis – diabetes mellitus