Gallbladder pains but tests are normal

I've been having really bad pains in my right side for the last 2 and a half months now.
There are times when it's been unbearable and nearly passed out. I've spent days sicking up what feels like battery acid along with normal things.
When I'm not ring sick I feel it an when the pains not really really bad there's a constant ache with occasional painfull stabbing sensations.

I've had an ultrasound but it only showed a 2mm stone which te dr said wouldbt cause the pain.
They have ran 3 lots of blood tests and all came back normal. No infection or anything wrong with my liver or pancreas.

I've seen 4 different drs and when they poke me around they all say it seems to be my gallbladder. Apparently I flinch in all the right places and feel the pain in the exact place when they touch my gallbladder. But nothing's showing up

Could it still ve something wrong with my gallbladder even if the bloods are normal? Or If anyone has any other thought On what it could be id be really greatfull. I just want the pain to stop and the drs not to give up on looking.  

[Sarsi]

Hi there,

Sorry you have been having such a lousy time lately.....Have you heard of a condition called Sphincter of Oddi Dysfunction? I'd research this and if it sounds like what you're suffering, have a chat with your doctors about it.

I hope that you can get some answers and feel better soon

Sarsi

[Reruho]

Iveyy,
Ask the doctor is you could have a HIDA Scan done to see how well you Gb is functioning. Like you I had pain and normal tests results. It was the HISA Scan that showed I had a low functioning GB. My ejection fraction was 15%, anything below 35% is considered abnormal.
Reta

[Christopher R Watters, MD]

I continue to be surprised by the misunderstanding of some physicians. Gallbladder disease is just that - a diseased gallbladder. As all the discussants will attest, stones are not required to have all the misery. The stones that are seen are merely the visual evidence of a bad gallbladder. If you have typical gallbladder symptoms, all you need is some evident of an abnormal gallbladder to be comfortable recommending cholecystectomy. I'm not sure how some (usually primary care) physicians get into the mindset of "little stones - little pain." The fact of the matter is that small stones are the most dangerous because not only can you get the gallbladder symptoms but you can also have these pass down the common bile duct causing blockage, cholangitis or gallstone pancreatitis which is probably the most deadly complication of gallbladder disease. Your ultrasound was abnormal and documented an diseased gallbladder. Your symptoms are consistent with gallbladder disease. You should NOT have a HIDA w/CCK as these are contra-indicated if there are any stones because you can force the stone down the duct and precipitate severe complications. Of all these physicians that you have seen, do any of them actually treat gallbladder disease? The approach to a symptomatic patient with ANY gallstones was addressed by a NIH Concensus Conference in 1992. This should define the treatment algorithm that we all practice by. Failure to follow these guidelines constitutes substandard care.

[Reruho]

I complained to the first surgeon I saw about continuing pain after his exam. He solution was to send me to a shrink to make sure my pain wasn't being caused by depression. the doctor just shook his head when I told why I was there. I now know the continuing pain was the result of the chronic Cholecystitis reacting to his exam.

I have to agree with you about the little stones posing the greatest danger. Ejection of those stones into the biliary tree is just opening up a whole new can of worms.
Reta

[Annoyedbypain]

My gb problems started in 8/2005 a week of having my daughter.  They found the stones (there was 8 and 4 were on the larger side) during an ultrasound and was in complete pain, vomitting, and could barely breath.  My insurance I had would not cover the surgery to remove it UNLESS it was an emergency. My levels did not show it to be an emergency.  So over the next 4 years I was in and out of the ER, with GB pain all they could do is give me a shot for pain and send me home.  I ended up getting pregnant and had to go in at least twice a week for it at that point, at 14 weeks pregnant my levels skyrocketed, to the point they had to remove the GB and retrive a stone from the bile duct.  Lost the baby due to the pain and stress of it!  Still have pain from time to time, depending on what I eat, but nothing they can do about it.

[Christopher R Watters, MD]

This is a sad story. I'm not sure what the saddest part is though. Is it the insurance company? Is it that someone made a conscious decision to select such poor coverage? Was it the decision to get pregnant knowing that this would aggravate gallbladder disease while there was clear evidence of intractable symptoms? Is it feeling that the rest of your life wasn't worth the expense of the procedure? The cost of a laparoscopic cholecystectomy in NC if it is paid for out of pocket would be less than what would be spent on a pack a day smoking habit over three years. As a surgeon, if a patient presents to the ER with her second bout of biliary colic we admit them and remove their gallbladder. This is done regardless of their ability to pay. As the surgeon assigned to the ER each day, it is the morally and ethically right thing to do. Out of roughly 3500 gallbladders that I have removed in my career, about 500 of them were from uninsured patients. It is part of the job and allows me to feel good about myself at the end of the day. My assumption is that nothing but appreciation will come my way from these cases.

[Reruho]

That is a lot of good karma. Keep it up.
Reta

[mine4wine]

I too have considerable amounts of pain in my upper right side. Most of the time the pain is like a knot in my side but sometimes it is sharp, stabbing pain. I've had all kinds of bizzar stools too. I've been for just about every test the doctors can think of and all come back fine. I've had blood work done 4 times ordered by 3 different doctors with nothing abnormal, no hieghtened white blood cells or liver enzymes. Urine test which caused me to be treated for dehydration, stool samples testing for bacteria and paracytes - all came back fine, x-rays that showed a considerable amount of stool in my colon, ultra sound that showed fluid around my gallbladder, CT scan also showed considerable amount of stool, HIDA scan that showed my gallbladder was functioning at 97%, colonoscopy and endoscopy with biopsy to check for gluten intolerance that showed nothing. Now I'm trying to go lactose free for a while to see if that helps. However, yesterday I had frosting but today I did not have any dairy or products with dairy but I had an egg sandwich at lunch and a handful of peanuts as a snack and I've been in pain since about an hour after lunch....My doctor told me to keep a food diary and if we can narrow it down to fatty foods other than dairy he will still remove my gallbladder because I show classic symptoms of gallstones even if the tests don't show anything. The first episode that caused me to go to the doctor was the worst. I thought I was having a heart attack. The pain started just below my ribs but was in my right shoulder blade too and then later I felt it in my back.
So if you figure it out let me know, and if I figure it out I will be sure to let you know!

[Happysoul123]

This is a first post for me - late last summer had my first bout of excruciating spasming pain - had some investigations - no stones in my gall bladder.  Though on a fat free diet I continued to have random, varied pain and lost a good amount of weight.  My whole digestive system seemed unsettled, bowels too.

However - I had also had peanuts before my initial awful pain.  And - previously the last two times I had eaten peanuts -  I just had a kind of achey (achy) tummy and the second felt some bloating.  

For me I am convinced the peanuts caused my desperate pain and gastric upset.    

I am still on a fat free diet - my whole digestive system seems to be extremely delicate, I need to eat regularly for instance - I still get tummy pain, back and shoulder pain, under rib pain on both sides and pain down the left hand side too.   Not bad pain just achey (achy) and irritating.

Personally I feel that whatever happened to cause my initial awful pain seems to have sensitised the whole of my digestive tract and I am still struggling to deal with it.

However - wanted to point out the peanut issue -

Lindy

[mine4wine]

Thank you, I will watch that, because I did have peanuts. Not sure about the first episode though. As far as your symptoms are concerned, I've heard that nuts and seeds can "get caught in pockets of your intestines" (diverticulitis?) and that usually causes pain in the left side.
I'm beginning to accept that I am going to have to live with my pain and bouts of explosive stool. So now, I'm trying to figure out what makes it worse, so I can avoid those foods...so thank you for the peanut suggestion.

[meemees4]

I have pain in the upper right rib area that radiates to the back and hurts to breathe, like Im having a heart attack, I don't have pain often but when it comes on it can hurt from 2 hours to 5 hours.  I have had all the tests except the colonoscopy and said they were normal but I feel like it is my gallbladder.  what do you suggest? Thanks Kim Clark

[boatnerc]

you are a good surgeon evidently who really cares for people reguardless of money!  People like you are few and far between.

[Vent4jesus]

I also think I have a gallbladder problem even though all tests are fine. I live in Springfield, La. and am currently looking for a doctor at OLOL who will remove my gallbladder even though tests were fine. If you know someone I would love to have their name. Thanks Barbara