they leave a sphincter in when removing gall. it can spasm and cause great pain I cant take heavy narcotics for this reason, I also cannot eat very fatty foods, depending on yourr snesitivity , some have no affects ftom sphincter
Here's a link to some information on SOD: http://hopkins-gi.nts.jhu.edu/pages/latin/templates/index.cfm?pg=disease1&organ=3&disease=12&lang_id=1
In the meantime try to follow a lot fat diet - it may not be the quantity you're eating, but the quality.
Talk to your doc about doing an MRCP. It's non-invasive and may be able to tell you whether or not there's something going on within the biliary system. Stones or sludge can form after surgery, or become 'swept' into the comon bile duct during surgery, and they can cause irritation and spasms long after surgery. Some anti-spasm meds may help.
Sounds familiar but I didn't have hiatial hernia. You might want to check out Sphincter of Oddi problem which is common for women that had laproscopic gall bladder surgery. I'm currently seeing a pancreatic specialist trying to find out my problem. Fortunately the test came back indicating I had no problem with my pancreas. However, still waiting to find out about the Spincter of Oddi problem. There is a yahoo group that has lots of good information if you want to check it out. http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/Pancreatitis_sphincterofoddi/