Gallbladder test 8% efraction rate what now???

[shellandd]

I just had a hida scan done today of my gallbladder at got a 8.5% efration rate.  I am 32 and excercise regularly.  I had a baby a year ago and have lost all the baby weight and then some.  I breast fed for 11 months and all problems with stomach pain began there after.  I have had numerous tests done in the last 6 months and this was the first test to detect a problem.  Is the gallbladder a issue for most women after pregnancy??  I am relieved to now know what has been causing my pain but I am scared to what will have to happen next.  My question is can I do something to save my gallbladder from having to be removed???

[shellandd]

Thanks for you reply.  I am going to try and save it before I just tell them to take it out.  I have been reading sights on the Internet that say bowel cancer can result in later years following the removal of the gallbladder.  I still think this is all related to hormone flucuations after the birth of my son and nursing.  I am going to go to a nutritionist who specializes in gastro intestinal problems and see If it helps and then I will retake the hida scan in a few months to see if result and symptoms change.  I just don't see surgery in my future.  I have not met with the surgeon or the dr yet following the test.  If there are complications than that plan may change.

[michell221]

This is very common in middle aged women and during and after pregnancy.  Once a Gallbladder is not functioning  then it will have to come out eventually. Since your level is so low then you probably will need it out soon.   Normal is 35- 75 %  Most surgeons will want to remove a gallbladder below 30% because it means the bile is trickling out slowly and it can back up causing damage to organs and other issues.  Things like gallbladder flushes etc are not good for you so do not do that. Once it goes bad you can just try to deal with it as long as you can but it will have to come out eventually.   You can eat very very lowfat in the meantime until you make a desicion. Fat causes more pain and issues.



   The surgery is pretty simple and routine so I would not be scared of that. They make tiny incisions and the surgery is only an hour or two. They give you pain meds so you will be ok.   You will be sore for a week or so then slowly you will get back to normal. Its best to eat extremely low fat for a few months to avoid tummy trouble.  

Some people get back to normal quickly and can eat whatever they want after surgery.  Others have dumping syndrome and have diarrheah and cramping when ever they eat .  For some this lasts 6 months - 1 yr and for a slight few this never goes away.  The drs can prescribe welchol or a powder to help stop the diarrheah but a lot of people do not like the side effects.

One other issue that could possibly happen is the surgery does not cure the pain.  I wish I would have known about that.   There is a rare thing called Sphincter of oddi dysfuction. It mimicks gallbladder pain and often causes your gallbladder to slowly lose function because your sphincter spasms and backs up the bile causing damage to your gallbladder.  

When I had mine out last year I hurt even worse and started having attacks of severe pain in recovery . It was because they had me on morphine in recovery.  It turns out Morphine causes severe pain of the sphincter because it increases the pressure.  The drs could not figure out what was wrong.  It was finally diagnosed 5 months later.  My dr explained most people never know they have sphincter of oddi until the gallbladder is removed and the attacks continue.  The bile backing up from the sphincter spasming is what caused my gallbladder to lose function.    The attacks are now worse because the gallbladder is not there to absorb that extra pressure and without it there I feel the pain 10 x more. I could have probably left it in another year or so since I was at 23% but I had it taken out since surgeon told me I should.  

You could ask your dr about the possibility of this disease before your get it out.  I would also make sure the Dr who does your surgery has done thousands to minimize your risk.    Again most people have no problems but I just wanted you to know all of the risks before getting it out.