Gallbladder might have to come out

[JAMAS]

Well, after a weekend at the hospital with Pancreatitis, it looks like I will have to have my Gallbladder removed.

Has anyone had experience with that?

Does anything change after the surgery? Diet, etc?

Thanks everyone.

[tom4bren]

Wifey had hers out long before we ever met. AFAIK she never missed it. They go in through your belly button now so you won't even have a scar to brag about.

Best of luck with the procedure ... Keep us posted.

Our prayers will be with you.

[circmand]

Wifey had hers out long before we ever met. AFAIK she never missed it. They go in through your belly button now so you won't even have a scar to brag about.

Best of luck with the procedure ... Keep us posted.

Our prayers will be with you.

The only thing he has ever said is you really have to cut down on the greasy fatty foods as they go through you quick. (just the real bad stuff like real philly cheese steaks)

[tom4bren]

Between what you posted ... & your siggy - that was one mental image I really didn't need this early in the morning. Sorta like waking up to that colon cleaning info-mercial at 2AM.

[VX KAT]

Sorry to hear this Jon, hope all goes well! Although it's usually removed due to gall stones, many many many people have had it removed and seem to do fine.

[JAMAS]

Although it's usually removed due to gall stones

I should have been more specific...my pancreatitis was due to a gallstone

[vt_maverick]

Got your email this morning Jon, sorry to hear it. But hey, if you need more time on the project there's no need to put yourself in the hospital for an excuse!

My dad just had part of his GI tract removed and I believe the advice he got was the same that you might get - don't go on a 3 mile hike right after you eat unless there are porta-jon's all along the way.

Good luck, hope you feel better!

[JAMAS]

Thanks everyone for your help.

I meet with the surgeon on Thursday to discuss my options.

[mdwyer]

Has anyone had experience with that?

Does anything change after the surgery? Diet, etc?

In theory, the gall bladder is why humans eat a couple times a day instead of grazing the whole time. Without the bladder, you can't store up enough bile to process the fats you eat all at once.

In practice, it only holds about a shotglass-worth of bile, while your body makes about a litre a day. So, your diet should probably trend towards low-fat after the surgery. You'll find that balance yourself pretty quickly, since the fat that doesn't get processed is going to be pretty obvious when it comes out the other side. Ew.

Anyway, my mom recently had hers out via the laproscopic procedure. The surgery went perfectly. She had a bit of pain for about a week, including some shoulder soreness that is a side effect of the inflation that they put you through. Odd.

Near the end of the week, though, she had a pretty severe brain bleed that took her out for something like three months. A stroke /is/ a possible side effect of any surgery, though... what are you gonna do?

I realize that saying, "Other than the stroke, the surgery went great!" is a little like asking, "So, other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how did you like the play?" but ... well, you asked.

[nfpgasmask]

Mother-in-law had hers out 2 or 3 years ago, she's good.

Bart

[JHarris1385]

DON'T!

We as a country cut the gallbladder out instead of finding the true source of the problem. Look at any other country compared to ours (yes overall we have a worse diet). No other place in the world removes a gallbladder like out docs do. Its is there for a reason.

[PK]

DON'T!

We as a country cut the gallbladder out instead of finding the true source of the problem. Look at any other country compared to ours (yes overall we have a worse diet). No other place in the world removes a gallbladder like out docs do. Its is there for a reason.

Wow - not sure what your health system is like, but that could be a dangerous diagnosis to make without seeing the patient or knowing the facts.

My brother delayed having his gall bladder removed, and it nearly killed him. Went septic and started to poison him from the inside.
He eventually recovered fully and lives a normal life without any problems.

Jamas, by all means get a second opinion if you want to, but better make it a more informed one than this site.

Good luck man - those stones can be painful.

PK

[vt_maverick]

Which is... to process wonder supplements I bet!

J/k, couldn't help but poke a little fun.

[JHarris1385]

This hits close to home for me. My wife had hers taken out right before we got together. It was 100% not needed. The only issue was that she was prescribed medicine for acid reflux when that is not what is needed. So nevertheless I am well versed on this subject as you are essentially removing an organ that you need, due to the reccomendation from a doctor that has learned this practice from his lazy predecessor. We used to not do this, the spike has been in the last 10 years. It honestly boils down to money, what costs more....fixing it and a twice a year check up if that? or a surgery, two week, one month, 6 months check up?

[VX KAT]

DON'T!

We as a country cut the gallbladder out instead of finding the true source of the problem. Look at any other country compared to ours (yes overall we have a worse diet). No other place in the world removes a gallbladder like out docs do. Its is there for a reason.

This hits close to home for me. My wife had hers taken out right before we got together. It was 100% not needed. The only issue was that she was prescribed medicine for acid reflux when that is not what is needed. So nevertheless I am well versed on this subject as you are essentially removing an organ that you need, due to the reccomendation from a doctor that has learned this practice from his lazy predecessor. We used to not do this, the spike has been in the last 10 years. It honestly boils down to money, what costs more....fixing it and a twice a year check up if that? or a surgery, two week, one month, 6 months check up?

I just gotta say something here. I'm troubled by the word "DON'T" in your first post, and "100% Not needed" in your 2nd post, as well as the word "lazy predecessor". I think it's too far over the line to basically be espousing medical "information" and "advice" here. I do recall you mentioned you'd been accepted into a medical school, but that means you are not an MD (perhaps yet). I just think it's irresponsible to be doing that.

I know JAMAS is a smart guy, who's very cautious and does lots of research before he makes decisions on any topic. So I know he's not going to blindly take your words as gospel.

I'm all for Freedom of Speech here on our forum, within appropriate bounds. I read all the posts on your supplement thread. No one stopped you from posting about it. But, most importantly, no one was suffering from an acute medical condition at that moment. You don't have all the medical facts, you aren't a doctor, you can't condemn every diagnosis of cholecystitis as bogus and every physician as a scammer or just interested in money. And how in the world would you know if their predecessor was lazy?

Did you ever consider there can be alternate reasons for some of the data you mention (but don't provide citations for)? If there's been a spike in frequency in cholecystectomies, COULD that be because the laproscope has revolutionized abdominal surgery and they can now perform this procedure on more patients than were candidates for the open procedure?
Have you also considered the dramatic increase in morbid obesity as a possible cause for a corresponding increase in lap-choles being performed? Are you aware of the conditions that often contribute to cholecystitis? Are you aware there are numerous differences in the standard of practice/standard of care in medicine between the U.S. and other countries? Does that make one wrong and one right?

I'm not actually looking for answers to these questions, but I list them to give you and other readers some food for thought, when reading such strong statements such as yours.

I have a health care degree, and handled investigation and medical malpractice litigation for over 25 years, so believe me, I've seen, read, discussed, and know about more "adverse occurrences" than you could even possibly think of. I'm also "well versed" in many many medical conditions. Yet, I'd never claim to know or to suggest how JAMAS should proceed. The medical field is so vast, and there always are and always will be varying opinions.

I think it's best we wish JAMAS well, and let him and his medical team decide what's best for him. It's irresponsible and can even be deadly to insert ourselves into a situation where we're not an expert!