Gallbladder Emergency visit

[Sue J]

Had my first symptoms of GB while in college, age 19. Xray showed that I had many stones. Doc said I could try to control it with diet - avoid fried foods and things like onions, cabbage, broccoli, etc.

I managed just fine for 8 or 9 years and then was having recurring attacks so I had it out in 1983, age 28. This was before laparoscopy so I had the big surgery with a 6 weeks recovery. I've been fine since then and very glad I took care of it.

My sister was in her 50's and had a sudden GB attack after never having any kind of GB problem. I think she had a stone stuck in a duct. She got to an ER and had the laparoscopy surgery the next day. Our brother also had his out in his 40s.

Maybe you'll have another attack, maybe not, but I suggest travel insurance!

 

[Ready2Go]

I had an attack on election night in 2008. I thought it was just indigestion from the results. Anyways, wasn't getting better and was starting to wonder if it was a heart attack. So, I drove myself to a local hospital. They did the usual tests and finally, an ultrasound....which confirmed the gallstones. By then, I was feeling better. Attack over. 30 Minutes after the ultrasound, a surgeon appeared trying to sell me gall bladder removal. No joke...it was almost like she was selling me a used car or a timeshare. I said no thank you and went home. I immediately changed my diet and did a bunch of research. I never had another attack but did have the gall bladder removed 18 months later...different hospital and different surgeon. Laproscopic. Very simple process. I think I missed one day of work.

 

[CRLLS]

2 year follow-up on this issue. I have been managing the issue thru the use of modern chemistry. Drugs to stop the spasms and drugs to ease the pain seem to have worked. I had to resort to these maybe 5 times over the last 2 years. A few weeks ago I had another gallbladder episode. This time the pain was not relieved by the meds. Off to the ER. Another ultrasound confirmed the same. Not a surprise as I am now somewhat an expert on the symptoms. Stronger drugs, and a few hours more time solved it for this time. So I decided to have the surgery on last Thursday.

The surgeon also suggested getting my first Colonoscopy which I agreed to also. I had to have a corona virus test to be cleared for the surgery. If you haven't had one, it is something, let me tell you. I won't go into that ordeal.

I am told that the surgery went well. I really wasn't there (mentally) However, there were some complications. The anesthesiologist had a very difficult time inserting the ET tube inserted. What normally takes maybe 15 mins took more than 1 hr due to limited motion in my neck. Evidentially there is some bruising, swelling, damage etc. Here I am 3 days after and I still have difficulty talking. Swallowing is still too difficult to take real food yet. Jello and yogurt are it and that just started yesterday. Ice and water? not really yet. I spoke barely to the anesthesiologist yesterday and he said I should start to feel better within a week! If not, see an eyes nose throat specialist. Oh, on a somewhat positive note, they put a note about the problem with the ET tube on my file. There might be some other technique they could use in the future.

Everything related directly to the actual laproscopic Cholecystectomy and Colonoscopy seems to have gone well. So for that, I am glad(so far). I hope this gets better. I thank all of you who made me feel better about this. I had never read about ET tube related problems with GB surgery. Thought I would share.

 

[W2R]

So glad your surgery went well! At last, it's over now, thank goodness, and won't be bothering you any more. Interesting about the problems with entubation. I never knew that could happen. Thanks for the follow up post.

 

[pacergal]

Thanks for the follow up. DH had surgery a few years ago after several episodes, he is doing well. I expect you will too.
Sorry to hear about the trouble with anesthesia. Do you have arthritis in your neck? Give it some time for the swelling/bruising to resolve, do be sure to get enough fluid to stay hydrated!
Take care, hope you heal soon.

 

[LARS]

2 year follow-up on this issue. I have been managing the issue thru the use of modern chemistry. Drugs to stop the spasms and drugs to ease the pain seem to have worked. I had to resort to these maybe 5 times over the last 2 years. A few weeks ago I had another gallbladder episode. This time the pain was not relieved by the meds. Off to the ER. Another ultrasound confirmed the same. Not a surprise as I am now somewhat an expert on the symptoms. Stronger drugs, and a few hours more time solved it for this time. So I decided to have the surgery on last Thursday.

The surgeon also suggested getting my first Colonoscopy which I agreed to also. I had to have a corona virus test to be cleared for the surgery. If you haven't had one, it is something, let me tell you. I won't go into that ordeal.

I am told that the surgery went well. I really wasn't there (mentally) However, there were some complications. The anesthesiologist had a very difficult time inserting the ET tube inserted. What normally takes maybe 15 mins took more than 1 hr due to limited motion in my neck. Evidentially there is some bruising, swelling, damage etc. Here I am 3 days after and I still have difficulty talking. Swallowing is still too difficult to take real food yet. Jello and yogurt are it and that just started yesterday. Ice and water? not really yet. I spoke barely to the anesthesiologist yesterday and he said I should start to feel better within a week! If not, see an eyes nose throat specialist. Oh, on a somewhat positive note, they put a note about the problem with the ET tube on my file. There might be some other technique they could use in the future.

Everything related directly to the actual laproscopic Cholecystectomy and Colonoscopy seems to have gone well. So for that, I am glad(so far). I hope this gets better. I thank all of you who made me feel better about this. I had never read about ET tube related problems with GB surgery. Thought I would share.

Been there, done that. Had emergency Gallbladder surgery December of 2019. Surgery went well... sadly had a lot of other post complications. The good news was that despite much going wrong I rebounded quickly from each speed bump.

A year and a half on... lack of gallbladder is a total nonevent. I’m sure it will be the case for you as well.

Good luck with your recovery!

 

[swakyaby]

Glad to hear you had an uncomplicated gallbladder surgery, but sorry to hear you had an unexpected difficult intubation. Usually, an intubation effort that took that long is often due to more than one problem, rather than just limited neck mobility (although that's a big one!). Limited ability to open the jaw wide can make the view of the larynx really difficult. Prominent upper incisors and a small lower jaw are a few other anatomical issues that could contribute to a difficult view. For any future surgeries, be sure to let your surgeon and especially your anesthesiologist know you had an unexpected "difficult intubation" so that specialized airway equipment can be in the room; often that makes any post-operative vocal cord/swallowing difficulties minimal-to-nonexistent.

A standard straight-forward intubation attempt is usually 15 seconds.

 

[CRLLS]

No arthritis in my neck that I know of. I just assume that the number of rear end accidents that I've had over the years has added up. Regardless, spinal surgery is just not on my list, ever!.

I expect that once I recover fully, I will be OK. I did manage to eat some crackers today.

As for the 15 seconds vs 15 minutes is concerned, I think the surgeon was possibly referring to the time in the OR before his part of the job actually started. He had the OR scheduled from 12:00 to 1:50 and it was after 3PM that he called my DW. It was definitely 1 hr before the ET was in place and the surgery part could begin.

 

[Telly]

Glad you got it done, that's behind you now. I have been intubated twice, first time my emergency GB removal, second time open-cut hernia repair. Other than a very dry throat the first time waking up, I had no idea I was intubated. I asked the surgeon (same surgeon for both procedures) at the follow-up office visits whether I had a breathing tube (yes each time).

I have had zero real problems without a GB. That said, I have never been one to scarf down loads of very fatty meats including pork. It's just never been me. But I finally found out something that did cause problems... eating too many roasted almonds day after day. They were good! And I sort of went on a daily binge with them after buying some. Seemed like a healthy snack. What I didn't know, was that almonds have a particular fat that is hard to digest. And with no GB to pour in the reinforcements...

After some days went by, don't remember how many, I had an accident. Glad it was here at home! Let's say it was an unexpected and totally out of control export of liquid out of a port normally reserved for solids! I figured it was the almonds, as that was the only change in my diet. Wiki articles helped me confirm it. It took a week for all of the vegetable fat that wasn't being digested to finally clear my system. I stayed home that whole week, never wanting to be anywhere else till I was sure everything was 100% normal again. I have had almonds after that, just very small quantities, with no problems.

 

[eytonxav]

Glad your surgery went well. Usually they recommend a low fat diet afterwards. To be honest, I still consume fats way in excess of the recommendations I received and have no adverse effects.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Glad your surgery went well. Usually they recommend a low fat diet afterwards. To be honest, I still consume fats way in excess of the recommendations I received and have no adverse effects.

Same here. I had my GB removed a couple of years ago and the first few months I took it easy on foods. These days, I don't limit myself at all. On a rare occasion that I eat too much, I pay for it. Although I don't know if this is because of the GB removal. I do know that my digestive system seems to work much better after having that devil bastard excised from my body.

 

[rayinpenn]

Hang in there better days are coming! Sometimes it just takes the courage to do the surgery.

 

[Poopycat]

Glad your surgery went well. 10 years ago I went to the ER for nausea and pains in my side. I thought it might be appendicitis. It was actually gallstones. They weren’t fun, made me sick to my stomach, but was nothing compared to the agony of kidney stones. I had been feeling ill after eating for quite some time before the episode in the hospital; the doctor said I must have a really high pain tolerance.

I had surgery the next morning and there were complications. They nicked the bile duct so I had a tube with a big container coming out of the side and it was collecting bile. Blech! I had to have an endoscopy dome the next day and they put a stent in to fix the bile duct. Then I developed pancreatitis. What was supposed to be an overnight surgery ended up being 8 days in the hospital. The weirdest thing is that I didn’t have anything but water and ice chips for the first six days and yet I wasn’t hungry the entire time.

The complications weren’t over, unfortunately. After I left the hospital, the site where the tube had been placed became infected so the wound wasn’t healing. I went back to the surgeon and he said yes, it’s infected. He needed to remove the infected area. So he prepared a syringe filled with local anesthetic...and jabbed it in, right next to the infection. The pain was so intense that I screamed. He cut out the infected area and then I had to go to a wound care center for weeks to get the wound repacked with gauze. I still have the scar.

The worst issue after gall bladder surgery was, and I hate to admit this but y’all have no idea who I am so who cares, is the severe diarrhea I developed after the surgery. Apparently having the runs, either temporarily or permanently, is not uncommon after the gall bladder is removed. Lucky me! I have always had some GI issues but the runs became almost debilitating for me. Fortunately the surgeon prescribed a medication (one that was actually designed to lower cholesterol but it actually helps some with diarrhea) and that has been a life saver for me. So less diarrhea and lower cholesterol! Hopefully you will be symptom-free.

 

[Kroeran]

A bad gall bladder starts to disrupt your lifestyle, travel, and won’t get better.

Coming in hot with an emergency to the ER wherever you are, outside of normal surgery hours, older than you are now, is risky.

A planned laparoscopic with a carefully selected surgeon, picking day and time of day, is very very low risk. Less inconvenient than gum surgery. And is life changing for the better. I should have done it years earlier.

You may need to adjust your diet. No biggie compared to an attack

 

[wmc1000]

Had a liver scan on Wednesday and it was normal. Ultrasound revealed gallbladder filled with 2mm stones. Doc says at some point she recommends seeing a surgeon.

Thoughts?

 

[Aerides]

Had a liver scan on Wednesday and it was normal. Ultrasound revealed gallbladder filled with 2mm stones. Doc says at some point she recommends seeing a surgeon.

Thoughts?

Is it bothering you? Are you having any pains? If not, eventually you might. Particularly after a high-fat food (ie, you go out for Mexican). Then it feels like you are being stabbed under your lung. Better to fish out a surgeon at least to have on deck, before that happens.

 

[pacergal]

Gallbladder pain is not a thing you want to deal with, and you never know when a blockage will occur. Slow , prolonged blockage with small stones or sludge can eventually affect the pancreas.
DH had multiple attacks and pancreatitis before we were able to finally get to a surgeon. They could never "see" any big stones and kept focusing on the pancreas issues. The hospital docs couldn't believe DH was not a drinker, as acute pancreatitis normally goes along with alcohol.
I kept telling the docs, I thought he needed his GB removed. And NO he doesn't drink!!!
Finally, First surgeon visit "you need your gallbladder out"
It was filled with "sludge", tons of tiny stones, not seen on CT scans.
No problem since.

See a surgeon. The final decision is always yours. Gallbladder attacks are painful, pancreatitis is much more so.

 

[eytonxav]

Gallbladder pain is not a thing you want to deal with, and you never know when a blockage will occur. Slow , prolonged blockage with small stones or sludge can eventually affect the pancreas.
DH had multiple attacks and pancreatitis before we were able to finally get to a surgeon. They could never "see" any big stones and kept focusing on the pancreas issues. The hospital docs couldn't believe DH was not a drinker, as acute pancreatitis normally goes along with alcohol.
I kept telling the docs, I thought he needed his GB removed. And NO he doesn't drink!!!
Finally, First surgeon visit "you need your gallbladder out"
It was filled with "sludge", tons of tiny stones, not seen on CT scans.
No problem since.

See a surgeon. The final decision is always yours. Gallbladder attacks are painful, pancreatitis is much more so.

Very true, its much better to deal with gallbladder before the pancreatic duct is blocked, as pancreatitis is not fun. My duct was blocked and they kept me in the hospital and fed me intravenously for almost a week to bring down my pancreatic levels before doing surgery. Was not able to eat or drink anything by mouth before the surgery. A most unpleasant experience, but the surgery itself was nothing compared to the pancreatitis.

 

[Tetto]

Had a liver scan on Wednesday and it was normal. Ultrasound revealed gallbladder filled with 2mm stones. Doc says at some point she recommends seeing a surgeon.

Thoughts?

Get it taken out- asap. Don’t wait until a rupture or worse. Almost lost my dad because of exactly that.

 

[niven]

Get it out. I suffered for years with an occasional but increasing issue that my doctor kept telling me was acid reflux. Eventually, the PA sent me to get an ultrasound and the gallbladder was full of stones. I was glad to get it out.

My younger brother also had issues with stones but they found it quicker with him. Unfortunately, this was during the first year of COVID and they kept putting the surgery off and feeding him pain medication. When they finally took it out the surgeon said the gallbladder had died and he had gangrene. He's ok now but obviously that was a bad situation.

 

[Breedlove]

Get it removed , a really funny but true story . I had a colonoscopy a few years ago an no problems but when I went to bed my stomach hurt . Of course DW kept saying it is just gas .
It got so bad later that I said take me to the hospital . Yea about 3:00 Am in the morning .
So I go to the emergency room and they put me on an IV . Then the guy running the IV says I will be right back he leaves the rom then after about 10 mins. returns. He says there was a guy out front messed up on bath salts and they needed his help. By this time I felt great and
said I can go home no no wait for the Doc. The doc. comes in and wants to do a flow test . I said no! I didn’t know what a flow test was . So they called my family doctor he convinces me to take the flow test . So they wheel me in and I am watching a screen and a guy walks in and says my name is doctor xxx . He says unhook him and prepare him for emergency Gall Bladder removal . They wheel me to another room , they start hooking me up a guy asked me what I thought of the Astros . …..Then I woke up in my room felt like a new man .
The nurse told me I had to stay over night I said no no I feel fine . The night doctor came in and said call your wife , I am releasing you. No pain , I never looked back

 

[Poopycat]

I had a pain about 8PM Fri night, immediately after my regularly scheduled pizza. I've had that sort of pain before, maybe 1 or 2x per year over the last 5 years or so. It starts out as a bloated feeling, then a pain under my ribcage on my right side. I then take Gas-X and Pepto and it subsides over then next few hours. This time, it did not subside. 8 hrs later with no sleep and no letting up on the pain, I was thinking something must be different. I woke DW at 4AM and she drove me to the emergency room. Just as we were pulling into the ER, the pain started to subside. What to do? I decided to have things checked out anyway and went inside. Long story short, they did blood tests and ultrasound. Blood tests were all normal. the diagnosis is I have Gallstones, one as large as 20cm. I guess that was what I was experiencing these last few years, not gas. I was prescribed pain killers that should help thru any future episodes and told to see my GP soon. But it may be 6-12 months before I have my next one to know if the drugs will help.

I am conflicted between having surgery or not. It seems that nothing comes without risk. Both my DB and close friend recently went thru surgery with complications. One took two more surgeries to correct and the other had pain and was in pain therapy for over a year, still not gone totally. If I delay surgery, as I get older, recovery may be more difficult. I am also concerned about falling into that small camp of diahorea.

I generally hate going to see doctors and do not have a GP. I haven't even gone for my "Welcome to Medicare free physical. I go to specialists when I need to have something addressed. I know I'm an outlier in this area.I have a long weekend group meet planned this week and a 5 day trip to China the following week. Based on the previous rate occurrence, I am comfortable with delaying "the decision" for a bit.

Without using scare tactics, please convince me to have the surgery, delay, or just manage thru the pain.I really could use some positive advice one way or the other.

Hi there,

My situation was a little similar to yours. I hadn’t been feeling well and one day I just felt worse. A coworker who had a nursing background told me to go to urgent care because it sounded like appendicitis. I went to urgent care and the nurse told me to go straight to the ER, which I did. It wasn’t appendicitis, it was a bad gall bladder with lots of gallstones. They didn’t really give me the option of going home. The doc said I could try to manage through it but I’d probably end up in the hospital at some point to have the gall bladder removed. I had surgery the next morning.

The surgery didn’t go so well; the surgeon nicked my bile duct so I had to have an endoscopy so they could put a stent into my bile duct to stop the leak. Then I developed pancreatitis. I apparently was quite sick, although I was so drugged up that I didn’t notice it. It’s the only time in my life where I hadn’t eaten in a week and I wasn’t hungry! An operation that should have resulted in an overnight stay ended up as an eight-night stay in the hospital.

And despite that, I’m glad I had it removed. The doctor said my gall bladder was full of stones and he’s surprised I handled the pain as well as I had…I was apparently very sick. I do know that for weeks, I felt horrible after I ate. After surgery, I felt fine after eating again. One bad side effect of the surgery was diarrhea. I guess that can happen to people who don’t have a gall bladder. The surgeon put me on a cholesterol medication that actually helps many people control diarrhea. I still take the medication but when I’m eating super healthy I am able to go without it.

It’s obviously up to you but I think you should just go ahead and have the surgery to remove it. You’ll likely feel much better in the long run.

 

[Breedlove]

They went in my belly button deflated the GB and pulled it out . For me no big deal.

 

[marko]

Get it removed , a really funny but true story . I had a colonoscopy a few years ago an no problems but when I went to bed my stomach hurt . Of course DW kept saying it is just gas .
It got so bad later that I said take me to the hospital . Yea about 3:00 Am in the morning . . He says unhook him and prepare him for emergency Gall Bladder removal . They wheel me to another room , they start hooking me up a guy asked me what I thought of the Astros . …..Then I woke up in my room felt like a new man .

OMG! This is exactly my story! Colonoscopy at 10 am, went home, 3am DW is driving me to the hospital. Had been having pain over the years but this time was a killer. BP at 250 which caused severe confusion. GB removal was the best thing I could have done.

 

[Bamaman]

No better time to get the gall bladder out than now. See your surgeon right away.

I was 2 hours away visiting an elderly aunt in the hospital, and I started to hurt. I quickly got to be miserable enough to even let my wife drive me home. I kept getting sicker & sicker.

At the emergency room, an ultrasound showed I had a gall bladder problem. Yea, it was gangrenous and just about to rupture. The general surgeon said I could have easily died after the arthroscopic surgery was completed.

So gall bladders are nothing to fool around with.