Introduction
Cholelithiasis is among the most common gastrointestinal illnesses. Approximately 80% of the cholecystectomies are performed laparoscopically. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) is considered the ‘gold standard' for treatment of cholelithiasis. Despite the fact that cholecystectomy is one of the most performed surgical procedures and the issue of drainage would be considered a relatively simple one, surgeons have failed to put an end to this controversy. Iatrogenic perforation of the gallbladder is an event which occurs in up to 30% of laparoscopic cholecystectomies. It has been commonly assumed that contamination of bile in the abdominal cavity could be a cause of infection and lead to the formation of a residual abscess or even to surgical wound infection.

AIM OF THE WORK
The present prospective case-control study compared the surgical outcomes and postoperative complications of laparoscopic cholecystectomy performed for uncomplicated gallstone disease with and without the insertion of an intra-abdominal drain in patients where iatrogenic gallbladder perforation was encountered.