Gallbladder already removed, having same weird pain again.

[Moorepunk]

I am 21 years old, I had my gallbladder removed when I was 20 last year on December 21, 2007. Yesterday, I started getting that same weird annoying pain on my right side again. Last time that happened I ignored it and it returned along with my chest being on fire. I, at first thought it was my acid reflux, but when tums, water or using the bathroom did not work I knew something was wrong. I was working as a nanny at the time and this happened at about 3:30 in the afternoon and I had to work through it till about 10pm when one of the parents came home. I went to the hospital and they reassured it was just my reflux, but I knew different. My chest pains NEVER lasted 6-7 hours before, they always went away with something. They gave me this lidocaine drink mixed with something else. The horrible burning pain in my chest went away, but as soon as that happened that strange feeling on my right was there. They gave me morphine so they could get an ultrasound done and told me I had gallstones and would need my gallbladder removed. So they sent me home with percocet and told me on Monday to make an appointment. This all happened early Thanksgiving morning, so that was on a Thursday and I had to wait till Monday. I never made it to Monday because Saturday, the side pain wouldn't go away even with the percocet. So again I went to the hospital, they gave me another ultrasound and had to admit me this time. They did an endoscopy and when I woke up they told me there was a blockage and they couldn't finish and that I was being sent to the bigger hospital. So that same night I was transferred there and first thing that morning they did a second endoscopy, they were able to remove sludge that was there and I was sent home that day. I had no problems in between this time and my surgery. Even after my surgery I was fine no problems, healed nicely. Until yesterday when that pain came back. Wondering if anyone could help me?

[CalGal]

I don't think the ER will be able to help. They'd probably consider it non-life threatening, give you a GI cocktail and send you home. As soon as you get insurance, find a good GI doc and get it checked into. In the meantime consider a low fat diet to try to see if that keeps the symptoms down.

[Moorepunk]

thank you for input, unfortunately, i just moved from NY to PA and I currently don't have insurance, nor a doctor. should i just go to the hospital?

[CalGal]

Sludge can often escape during GB surgery and unfortunately lodge itself in the common bile duct and cause problems later. It's also possible to form sludge and stones after the GB is gone. So if the pain is similar to what you previously experienced, go to your doctor and request that they check your liver and pancreatic enzymes, and talk to them about doing an MRCP. In the meantime you may want to consider following a low fat diet. It may be of some help.