The Fitz-Hugh--Curtis syndrome is an extragenital manifestation of gonorrhea, 
characterized by fibrinous inflammation of the subphrenic area with 
violinstring-like adhesions between the liver surface and the parietal 
peritoneum. When such patients present with acute upper right quadrant pain, the 
differential diagnosis to other abdominal emergencies (cholecystitis, peptic 
ulcer disease etc.) may be difficult, because it will not always be possible to 
isolate the causative agent from the external genitals. In such cases only a 
laparoscopic approach will allow a correct diagnosis. Two case reports are 
discussed in the light of the literature.