Gall Bladder Stone Treatment

A gallbladder is a small bag shaped like a pear, an organ below the liver in the upper right abdomen. Its main function is to store bile, a substance secreted by the liver that helps with digestion. Gallstones are small pieces of stones or solid material made from bile pigments, cholesterol and calcium salts which can cause severe pain and blockage of the bile duct. 

Have you ever had a strange pain feeling in your upper abdomen that you couldn’t explain? It could be an indication of a gallbladder that isn’t working properly.

Some people with gallstones have no symptoms at all, while others have extreme pain. If you are experiencing discomfort or pain in your upper abdomen or right side of your body, you may have gallstones, and you should seek treatment as soon as possible to avoid further difficulties.

You probably don’t require treatment if your gallstones aren’t creating any symptoms. Contact your doctor if you are having a gallbladder attack or other symptoms. Your symptoms may go away, but they may reappear, and you might need treatment. For treatment, your doctor may recommend you to a gastroenterologist or surgeon.

Gallstones are mostly treated by surgery to remove the gallbladder. Cholesterol stones can sometimes be treated without surgery, whereas pigment stones almost always require surgery. Shantiraj Hospital is fully equipped to conduct this surgery and the post operative care. Our specialist doctors use the latest technology and equipment to perform the surgery providing a comfortable experience to the patients. 

Types of Gallstones

Cholesterol stones: These are usually yellow-green in color, very common, making up 80% of gallstones. 

​​​​​​​Pigment stones: These stones are usually smaller in size and darker in color and are made up of bilirubin.

Gallbladder Stones Causes

• Overweight or obesity 
• Too much cholesterol in your diet
• During pregnancies, excess estrogen, hormone replacement and birth control pills can have side effects
• Having biliary infections.
• People with hereditary blood disorders such as anemia
• Excessive dieting and consuming certain cholesterol-reducing drugs

Symptoms of Gallbladder Stones

• Severe pain in the upper abdomen
• Pain in the back
• Nausea or vomiting
• Abdominal bloating (gas formation)
• Recurring intolerance to fatty foods
• Belching
• Indigestion
• dark urine
• clay-colored stools
• burping
• diarrhea

Image source: healinghospitals.com

Who is at Risk for Gallstones?

• Women are more prone than men
• People in their 30’s and 40’s
• Overweight men and women
• People with sudden weight loss
• Pregnant women
• Have diabetes
• Have a family history
• Fasting

What are the Complications Caused by Stones?

• Severe abdominal pain
• Nausea or vomiting.
• Jaundice
• Acute pancreatitis (swelling of pancreas)
• Fever

Diagnosis of Gallstones

• Blood tests
• Complete blood count
• Liver function test
• Coagulation profile
• Abdominal ultrasound
• Cholescintigraphy (HIDA scan)
• Endoscopic retrograde
• cholangiopancreatography (ERCP)
• Magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP)

Treatment of Gallstones

Treatment options for gallstones include:

• Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy: It is a surgical procedure to remove the diseased gallbladder. The gallbladder is removed using long narrow instruments through small incisions in the abdomen.The bile which goes to gallbladder from liver will now go to small intestine. Removal of gallbladder doesn’t affect your digestive system much except temporary diarrhea at times.

• Medications: Medications are there to dissolve gallstones which you can take by mouth. But it may take a lot of time, months or years of the treatment to dissolve the gallstones which can be very time-consuming and gallstones will likely form again if treatment is stopped. Medications are mostly reserved for people who can’t undergo surgery. Sometimes medications may not work at all.

Advantages of Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy

• Less pain after surgery.
• Faster recovery in laparoscopy than open gallbladder surgery.
• Less discomfort and early recovery.
• Back to the normal and routine activities very early.

Recovery

The time it takes you to recover is determined by the sort of surgery you have. You’ll need to stay in the hospital for a few days if your gallbladder is removed during open surgery. It could take anywhere from 6 to 8 weeks for your body to fully recover. Because laparoscopy is less invasive than open surgery, you will experience less discomfort and heal faster. The majority of those who have it are able to go home from the hospital the same day. You can be back to your normal routine within 2 weeks.

Preventing Gallstones

If you change your lifestyle habits, you may never have the risk of gallstones. Some suggestions are given in the following:

• A Healthy diet should be taken every day with lots of fibre
• Eating fish oil and olive oil.
• Avoiding fatty diets, refined carbs, sugar, and unhealthy fats.
• Doing exercises regularly for at least 30 minutes, 5 days a week.
• Avoid faster weight loss diets.
• Having family history or other health conditions, taking advice from the physician would be necessary.
• Eating raw fruits and veggies
• Eating foods like soybean, cabbage, oatmeal, eggs, mayonnaise, milk and peanuts is good
• Sugar and carbs should be avoided as much as possible.

Conclusion

Gallbladder is not an essential organ in the body, the patient can lead a normal life after the removal of gallbladder. By following the nutrition chart given by the nutritionist, avoiding spicy and fatty foods, the patient can be healthy without any complications. Following a healthy diet, reducing weight slowly and gradually with regular exercises would be helpful in keeping away the complication of gallstones and help stay healthy.