Gallbladder surgery? I need help!

[Juliagulia87]

Hi,
I am a 20 year old female that has had severe chronic right upper quadrant pain for a year. It is also accompanied by nausea, vomiting, and sometimes my eyes are jaundiced. I have had several tests which include an upper endoscopy with stomach biopsy and test for H.Pylori, colonoscopy with biopsy of colon, numerous CT scans of my whole abdomen one of them with contrast, a GI x ray series, HIDA scan, several ultrasounds on kidneys, gallbladder, etc., blood work to test for Hep C, Porypheria, IBS, liver function tests, and probably some things I have forgotten. ALL of them have been negative. I am at my wits end, the pain and vomiting is so intense sometimes I go to the ER just for some relief. The nurses in the ER are beginning to know me by name and we all know that is not a good thing. If anyone has any new ideas let me know.

My doctor recently referred me to a surgeon to have my gallbladder removed but i am concerned because i see a lot of people talking about how they still cannot eat certain foods. Is surgery not a good option?
-Julie

[Juliagulia87]

The surgery is the day after tomorrow! I'm getting nervous!

[Juliagulia87]

Hmm that doesnt sound too bad. I heard taking bile salts with meals helps prevent a lot of stuff too. I scheduled my surgery for April 1st so hopefully everything goes ok.

[davemc]

Just over 3 weeks since surgery and no pain whatsoever.  The incisions are completely healed.

Only mistake I made was letting myself go back to a somewhat normal diet too quickly.  Many posters on this site say they're told they have to ramp up to a normal diet over a 6 month period.  Others are told they should restrict fats forever.  And yet the surgical info I got said I could revert to my normal diet in a few days.  NOT!!!

My punishment for letting fat creep back into my diet too quickly was several episodes of intense pain (described in a previous post to this forum) that mimicked a gall bladder attack.  About a week ago I made a serious diet change to restrict fat and I guess it's paid off -- haven't had any pain/cramping events.  Is this cause-and-effect or coincidence?  Don't know.  I have an appt with a gastro doc in a week and he may just tell me to chill out for a few months, especially if I remain pain free on the low-fat diet.

[Juliagulia87]

Thanks for the input. How was the recovery time?

[davemc]

Most people I know who had GB surgery had no dietary restrictions long-term.  Short term you have to be cautious.  Some folks REALLY can't tolerate fatty foods for a while.  

My GB surgery was 3 weeks ago and I've found that a low-fat diet helped me avoid any problems.  

Biggest concern, which others have expressed, is the GB surgery doesn't always make the pain go away.  My attacks with intense back/ab pain fired back up just 2 weeks after having the GB removed.  It's pretty frustrating...

Good luck.  The GB surgery is really not bad at all, if that's the direction you wind up going!!

[Juliagulia87]

So this means i should prob. have tests for this first then? Ugh I am so tired of waiting I just want it to be done! I am in so much debt, so behind in school and so tired of everything! Seriously, frustrated.

[Sickboy61]

Follow the link I posted above.  I describes what it is, how its is diagnosed, what are the symptoms, and how they treat it.

also, do a google search, there is quite a abit about it on the internet.  



The thing is, it is diagnosed almost all the time AFTER you have had your gall bladder removed.  However, the problem can be SOD all along, and taking out the gall bladder does not make things improve at all.

[Juliagulia87]

How do they check for Sphincter of Oddi dysfunction?

[Sickboy61]

If all of those test have come back negative, but you still have symptoms, have they checked you for Sphincter of Oddi dysfunction?  From the sounds of it, you  seems like a possible candidate for this....

Follow this link to learn about it....

http://hopkins-gi.nts.jhu.edu/pages/latin/templates/index.cfm?pg=disease1&disease=12&organ=3&lang_id=1

[ChrystalB]

I had my gallbladder removed in 2005, i eat what i want and have no problems at all. If anything im happier having it out. No more attacks. The only thing i didnt like was the diareaha after it your system processes faster for a few mths afterwards. but its outpatient surgery and very easy.