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Post Gallbladder digestive problems

Like many of the articles in your forum, I too have problems since the removal of my gallbladder.  My gallbladder was removed nearly eight years ago.  Most of the information I have read states that this condition is usually mild and subsides with time.  This has not been the case for me.  After trying diet modification and Metamucil (and many other over-the-counter remedies), my surgeon prescribed Questran.  I have been taking Questran for about seven years.  In the beginning it worked great, but as I'm sure you are aware, Questran was designed for people who need to lower their cholesteral.  I simply take it for the side effects, which in people with normal digestive tracts causes constipation!

Over the years, the makers of Questran and similar prescription products have worked at making the side effects less severe for the patients who take it for what it was developed.  In the  process they have made it less effective for me.  I also wonder if I have built an immunity to it over the years, if that is possible.  Any suggestions?  I would also like to know more about this aloe therapy I've been hearing so much about?  If it works miricles for IBS sufferers and Cholitis victims, shouldn't it do the same for me?
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Avatar universal
Taken from elsewhere on this board:

It is not uncommon to have temporary digestive difficulties after gallbladder removal (cholecystectomy). The main reason is usually a difficulty in handling fats in the diet. Fat and certain fat-soluble vitamins require bile in order to be absorbed. When the gallbladder is present, it stores bile that the liver makes. During a meal, the gallbladder contracts, releasing a pool of bile into the intestine that is used for fat absorption. After cholecystectomy, bile is still produced by the liver, but is released in a continuous, slow trickle into the intestine. Thus, when eating a meal that is high in fat content, there may not be an adequate amount of bile in the intestine to properly handle the normal absorption process.

The change in intestinal bile concentration during high-fat intake may cause diarrhea or bloating, because excess fat in the intestine will draw more water into the intestine, and because bacteria digest the fat and produce gas. Some studies suggest that diarrhea after cholecystectomy may also be caused by excess bile in the intestine between meals3. There is usually no "malabsorption," in the sense that the amount of intestinal bile is sufficient to absorb the fat and vitamins necessary to remain healthy. (otherwise, we would not remove gallbladders with relative impunity.)
4.
There may be other reasons for bloating and abdominal discomfort after cholecystectomy. The most common-and in fact the most common reason after any abdominal surgery-is post surgical adhesions or motility problems of the bowel. Motility problems are usually seen in the immediate post-surgical period, and generally resolve. Adhesions, or intra-abdominal scars, are a later complication of abdominal surgery, and can cause recurrent difficulties.

The treatment for digestive problems after cholecystectomy of course depends on the reason for the problem. The options are too numerous to detail. As an initial measure, you may want to try a low-fat diet. I suggest discussing your problem , because bile is released into the intestine continuously.

A few points should be emphasized:
1. Most persons do not have digestive difficulty after cholecystectomy.
2. When it does occur, post-cholecystectomy diarrhea is temporary in most persons.
with your surgeon.

This response is being provided for general informational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice or consultation. Always check with your personal physician when you have a question pertaining to your health.

If you would like to be seen at our institution, please call 1-800-653-6568, our Referring Physicians Office and make an appointment to be seen with Dr. Tamir Ben-Menachem of the Division of Gastroenterology, one of our experts in the treatment of gastrointestinal and biliary disorders.
HFHS M.D.-tbm
Keyword: cholecystectomy
0.75

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Avatar universal
Thank you so much for the information, I appreciate any suggestions I can get.  I'm so tired of taking medicine.  I think I would feel better if it was natural.  I worry about long term side effects.  You said you did the aloe therapy for constipation.  That worries me that it may not work as well for diahrrea?  Since your gallbladder removal are your now experiencing diahrrea?  If so, let me know how the aloe therapy works for you.  I'm a little afraid to give up the Questran, because even though it isn't working as well as it used to, If I don't take it, I become violently ill to the point of sitting on the toilet and holding a trash can in my lap.  Any recommendations are appreciated.  God Bless and hope you find the answers. MiseryinAR
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Avatar universal
I also am having post gallbladder problems. I am going to continue tests this next week. I, like many of you, am searching for answers. If I do not have any blockages etc. I am going to take this article to my doctor.

I am suffering from nausea, light headedness, pain, increased pulse rate, dumping, gerd, and my stomach roars!

I've been put on Zantac and then Prevacid, which made me more nauseated.

I used aloe for years for constipation. I'm starting that therapy today.

The website with the article is loomisenzymes.com. You might also consider buying the book Prescription for Nutritional Healing by James F. Balch,M.D. and Phyllis A. Balch, C.N.C.
I've used this book over and over.

I hope this helps! I'm so sorry any of you are having to deal with this. It is only by God's grace that I can continue to take care of my family.

May He shower you with His peace, JENL
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Avatar universal
Im sorry to hear that you are having all these difficulties.  I too have a hyatle hernia (spelling?) and I think that is why I'm having so many problems lately, but I would consider another avenue if your doctor prescribes questran.  It has been changed so many times over the past few years that it's just not as effective as it used to be (at least not for me).  If you decide to try it (it may work for you depending on the severity of your symptons) DO NOT let them give you the generic.  You'll want the plain Questran in the blue can. All of the others are horrible tasting! and they don't work as good.  Beleive me, I've tried them all!  Also the label will tell you to mix it with 8oz. of liquid, but it works better if you use about 4oz.  Just make sure you mix it completely.

I hope you find a solution. Best of luck to you.
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Avatar universal
thanks for the info on amp, i'll have to try to find some more on it too.  i have yet not tried the questran because my doc always felt my probelem was more ibs which i had even before the gb surgery but it has gotten worse since the gb.  i also have gerd and a hiatal hernia.  so those things all complicate things.  but good luck finding something to help, i know , its not a fun thing to have to deal with..
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Aloe Mucilaginous Polysaccharide (A.M.P therapy in short), is supposed to be an all natural therapy with no side effects and is apparently working miricles in people who suffer from all sorts of digestive disorders and can even be taken as a precautionary measure by those who wish to evade digestive disorders with no apparent side effects.

I typed in digestive disorders and found the site, but I have heard people talking about it too.  You can go to the site at www.molocure.com and read their testimonials, but I was hopeing to find someone who has taken the all natural wonder cure to see how it really works.  It's not cheap but if it works as well as they say it does, it would be worth it.

I currently do not have health insurance and my maintenance medication for my post gallbladder removal symptoms (mainly diahrrea and cramping) costs about $55.00 to $75.00 per month.(and lately it hasen't been working as I stated in my original comment)

Are you have the same difficulties as I am or do you suffer from a different disorder?
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Avatar universal
I read this on a Medical help website.  I lost the site name but you can find it at www.etour.com here is a copy of what it said.  Good Luck and God Bless

After cholecystectomy, a few patients experience new or recurrent biliary colic-like pain; the pathogenesis and clinical course of postcholecystectomy pain are poorly understood. Papillary stenosis, which may occur before or after cholecystectomy, is a structural or functional disorder of the ampulla of Vater involving the terminal ducts and sphincters, causing pain from impeded flow of biliary or pancreatic secretions. Rarely, patients have demonstrable papillary fibrosis of the sphincter area, perhaps caused by prior inflammation or operative trauma. In the remaining patients with sphincter dysfunction, no structural abnormality is evident, although disturbed function and symptoms are present periodically. Both groups of patients experience periodic colicky pain with variable associated findings of transient elevation of bilirubin or liver enzymes, suggesting cholestasis, or elevation of serum amylase and lipase levels. The biliary tree, and less often the pancreatic duct, may be dilated on direct cholangiography and pancreatography. Sphincter pressures may be elevated when measured during endoscopic ductal manometry. Thus, findings from ERCP and perhaps sphincter manometry are most useful diagnostically. Small residual calculi are discovered in some patients. Endoscopic sphincterotomy may be curative in patients with objective findings but is controversial in patients with pain alone. Episodic pain caused by papillary disorders may have been responsible for the symptoms that prompted cholecystectomy and may be the cause of continued pain after surgery.

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Avatar universal
i've never heard of this aloe therapy, what is it and does it really work?  i'd like to hear more about it.  cyn
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