Hi all GB sufferers. Haven't posted for a while as have been busy. I had my GB removed at end of 2016. I am still having episodes of severe pain in RHS but slightly in front of wherre gall bladder did sit, accompanied with nausea & vomiting. Also still get the pains in the side & back of ribcage on RHS & this pain radiates to shoulder blade. Tonight had sharp pain that started in the middle of abdomen, just under sternum area, this tracked down to GB area & finished with a burning pain in ribs just under R armpit. Am waiting for an endoscopic ultrasound, my specialist thinks I may have gallstones in the bileduct causing a partial blockage. I also have deranged LFTs. Anyone out there have similar issues or helpful ideas. Am on a fairly restricted diet & feel quite sick if I look at cakes etc!!!
These are the symptoms you feel before having a gallbladder removed !!. Good luck with your investigations keep us posted with your results.
These are symptoms that 1 in 3 people have after gallbladder removal. I had my gallbladder removed 1 year ago, I have all those symptoms and more. This surgery, has disabled me. Dr just keeps giving me meds for acid reflux, and had a scope, I have bile reflux, from the gallbladder removal. There is no meds to control this, it is miserable. I pray for all of us with these problems. I hope as time goes on we will heal. Good luck to you.
I'm sorry you are having these issues after surgery. You naturally assume there will be no further issues after the gallbladder is removed. It is one of the risks surgeons point out when you consent to surgery I'm afraid.
If you have stones in the bile duct ERCP procedure may be able to remove them without the need for further surgery. It really depends on the size of the stones. Deranged LFTs would back up the theory that there is at least one stone in the bile duct affecting your liver.
You really need to push harder for an ERCP. Next time you have these pains, present yourself at A&E. The hospital doctors are otherwise unaware of how severe your symptoms are and will assume that you're able to cope with them and be happy to leave you on the waiting list. They may be able to bring forward your treatment, otherwise you are stuck on what I assume is a fairly long waiting list. Don't do as I did and just grit your teeth and pray.
You sound as though you are already eating a low fat diet and avoiding spicy food and alcohol etc so don't think there's much else you can do other than take some pain killers when these attacks happen.
The ERCP procedure is unpleasant but not painful and they do sedate you. It is usually performed as a day patient.
Unfortunately there are a lot of us out there with these issues and not enough resources. I hope you get your treatment soon.
J'ai aussi certains des problèmes que vous avez mentionnés, pas de nausées sauf un peu et pas de vomissements, mais j'ai plus de choses y compris des vertiges, une vision floue, des tremblements quand j'ai besoin de manger, bien que le taux de sucre dans le sang soit bon, aussi de l'anxiété et diverses autres choses, dont je n'avais pas avant que la vésicule biliaire soit enlevée il y a 6 ans
Hi Moira, I was the same after surgery and the pain steadily got worse and it was like my gallbladder was still there. I didn't have gallstones but a gallbladder that wasn't working properly. They said to me originally that they didn't think that all my pain was down to my gallbladder. They thought I might have sphincter of oddi syndrome but after surgery I decided to have a private consultation and saw a doctor that believed I had anterior cutaneous nerve entrapment, which is trapped nerves in the abdominal wall and it mimics gallbladder pain. I had to go to the pain clinic and they thought the same as I was positive for carnetts sign. Nearly 3 weeks ago now I had a nerve block put into a couple of places in my abdomen, it has reduced the amount of pain but I still have some but this treatment confirms diagnosis so I'm waiting for another appointment to see what the next step will be.
This condition is underdiagnosed when you look it up on the internet and could be the cause of more abdominal pain that what is diagnosed.
If you don't have gallstones then look along these lines and get a referral to the pain clinic, you gp can do that for you.
I hope you hear what is causing your problems soon, let me know how you get on. Good luck x
thanks Katherine but I had multiple small & slightly larger gallstones hence the belief that I may have gallstones in the bile duct.
Hi Moira, are they going to do an mrcp to check as this is a good test for that or a CT scan. Let me know what they're going to do.
Take care x
Funny you mention the anxiety Adrian, on 2 occasions now have had the pain & nausea crisiis shortly followed by a random panic attack. Have never had one of these before GB removal. Is it really related? The third crisis a few weeks ago was just pain , nausea etc without the panic attack, fortunately.
I am waiting to have an Endoscopic ultrasound as I have a spinal chord stimulator so can't have an MRCP. Don't have a date though.
Good luck 😉
J'ai entendu quelques autres personnes dire la même chose, j'en ai parlé au spécialiste et il a dit que certains des symptômes ressemblaient à un stress post-traumatique !
Je pense que la vésicule biliaire fait plus qu'ils ne le savent ?
OK, interesting. Although if you think about it, even if the doctors do attempt to minimise the whole GB removal surgery, it is surgery to have an organ removed which is fairly traumatic. Also its not too far fom the mysterious solar plexus region.... Maybe that's why?!?!
Ça vaut la peine d'y réfléchir, oui !