pain under right ribcage and round to back

[cathyfrankie]

Hello - i am a 36 year old female and have a dull constant pain under my right rib cage and sometimes into lower back. I am trying to get pregnant and 6 weeks ago had a polyp in my uterus removed and lap surgery to check all was okay (it was). For about a year i have had occasionally an uncomfortable feeling under my right rib cage but on and off and not severe. Since the surgery it has got worse and moves into my back and seems to be there constantly but still dull. It does seem to make a difference what i eat (fatty foods and alcohol seems to aggravate). I had a massage last week and you could hear liquid draining during the massage when he pressed under my ribs and it does feel better afterwards (and then a few days feels worse again). I am off to see my GP later today but can you advise anything or potentially what it might be? thanks

Cathy

[researchaholic]

Glad to see your doc took you seriously enough to make sure you are not in immediate trouble.  Even though your pain isn't severe, I know how that nagging pain just chips away at you and worry about what it is doesn't help either.   If it is bladder/kidney stones- as soon as it leaves your kidney into your ureter you will have no doubt!  Just drink lots of water and don't ignore it if it changes at all.  I have my fingers crossed for your attempts at pregnancy. Not to be nosy but wondering if you have kids or this would be your first.  I struggled for so long at pregnancy- was told I could never have any and now have three miracles- my last child weighed 21/2 pounds and was 13 inches long- a real shocker...but she is great now.  I guess that is why I am so empathetic when I see someone else working hard at having children! Good luck with the doctor and let us know what you find out.

[cathyfrankie]

Hi thanks for your thoughts - I went to the doctor and she has arrange an ultra sound of the area - she thinks it could be bladder stones but the jury is obviously out until she can see. She also did blood tests to check liver etc..
I went out last night and had a couple of glasses of wine and the pain is a bit worse this morning so seems best to stick to my healthy diet.

i will keep you posted, thanks again,

[cathyfrankie]

Hi thanks for your thoughts - I went to the doctor and she has arrange an ultra sound of the area - she thinks it could be bladder stones but the jury is obviously out until she can see. She also did blood tests to check liver etc..
I went out last night and had a couple of glasses of wine and the pain is a bit worse this morning so seems best to stick to my healthy diet.

i will keep you posted, thanks again,

[researchaholic]

I agree with clansmom about your gallbladder.  Also discuss with your doctor a possible Sphincter of Oddi disorder, which is becoming more widely recognized.  Your gallbladder releases bile for digestion through your bile duct into your stomach- the sphincter of oddi opens and closes to release bile and if there is a dysfunction there, too much or too little can be released and cause the same type of symptoms especially the draining noise.  A lot of people have their gallbladder removed only to find the symptoms remain because the real culprit is the sphincter-and they can check for that before they remove the gallbladder but seldom do even though lots of people have gallstones that never cause a problem.  You can certainly survive without a gallbladder but are always better with it unless absolutely neccessary.  Drs. are so quick to yank them out and people never question the "simple" laparoscopic surgery without knowing the complication rate for laparoscopic removal is much higher than with an open surgery.
Be aware, however, since the pain has increased, not to overlook a possible ectopic pregnancy, kidney infection or stones as well as a problem with your liver or stomach.  Pain in that area can easily be coming from another area (referred pain)- even appendicitis, stds or endometriosis.  The main thing is any pain in that area should be considered dangerous until the source is identified. Since the pain has worsened and you recently had surgery, it could be something different than the year long problem. Watch closely for a fever after any pain meds, tylenol, etc. have worn off.  Make sure your doc doesn't just guess based on your age, sex, etc.  Simple tests can rule most of these in or out and most of the possibilities can suddenly become an emergency if left without attention. You might google some of these things and see if the symptoms seem to match something closer than the other.  Sorry for the lengthy speech but I now weigh 100 pounds because of a "wait and see" attitude from my doc...  I also struggled to get pregnant and know that trying while dealing with pain and an unidentified problem can can be scary- you certainly wouldn't want to find out after you are pregnant that you also have a serious problem to deal with as well.  If by any chance you have a recent abdominal ct scan, etc. from the surgery they could at least look for something that may have been missed because they were concentrating on the uterus.  Good luck and let me know what you find out.

[theclansmom]

Your Liver sits up under your right rib cage, however so does your Gallbladder, and my guess is based on your comment about fatty foods and alcohol, that your Gallbladder is struggling to keep up with what exactly you are ingesting.  Cut out alcohol and fatty type foods for a week and see how you feel then.

The test for Gallbladder function is called a Hida scan.

Good luck