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Gallbladder removal when all scans negative

Posted , 15 users are following.

Seb14
Seb14

In July I was admitted to hospital with severe upper middle and right abdominal pain, I developed diarea and high fever and was diagnosed with intra abdominal sepsis, I had ultrasound, CT and endoscopy all negative. Sepsis was treated with iv antibiotics. Blood tests showed anemia and slight elevated lipase. After discharge I continued to have upper right pain mainly at night and sometimes a low fever I was admitted to hospital again at the end of 2013 again with pain and high fever which lasted for nearly 2 weeks, again it was treated with iv antibiotics,I had further ultrasound and mrcp again all negative, again bloods showed anemia and my ALT levels were elevated. Had sigmoid flexi scope which showed some patchy inflamation and biospy suggested ulcerative colitis. I was discharged with the diagnosis of unexplained pyrexia. My GI consultant was not convinced about the colitis causing the upper pain and arranged a EUS which was negative and a colonoscopy which showed no inflamation this time and I am waiting for biospy results but looks unlikely to be colitis causing all this. My Gi referred me to a surgeon who has mentioned taking out the gallbladder despite all tests being negative, but he says it is my decision to make and it may not cure the problem. I am so unsure of what to do and would appreciate any comments and suggestions.

0 likes, 48 replies

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  • Georgie66
    Georgie66

    Posted

    Hello Seb14. Your condition doesn't sound fun! Have you gone through the process of managing this via dietary changes to see if this has an effect on how you are feeling? I would say that it might be worth getting a nutritionist to help support you on changes to what you eat rather than immediately going down the route of having your gallbladder removed, especially if all results have proved negative to date. Would also recommend having a test for candida and H pylori if you haven't had those already? Take a good probiotic too to see if that helps. Sometimes cutting out certain food types for a period of time and then re-introducing them slowly to see what the impact is will put your system back on track. Hope that helps.
  • boyzmummy
    boyzmummy

    Posted

    Hi Seb,

    Sounds like your are really going through the mill. I agree with Georgie I would try changing your diet. Keep a food and drink diary, detail any changes in how you feel and bowel movements, must note times. My son is allergic to milk, soya and wheat and the diary pointed the drs into the correct tests. My main no no foods for the gallbladder were cream, fats, pork and rich foods. Good luck!

  • Seb14
    Seb14

    Posted

    Hi Georgie66' thank you for your response. My diet previous to last July was pretty healthy and since July am I following a low fat diet,no alcohol caffeine etc. I had a h pylori test when the pain first started in April last year which was positive and have had treatment and confirmation that it has gone. Tbh it's the fever and the infections that really worry me , when I went septic in July it was so scary, my blood pressure crashed and i just co uldn't stop myself from shaking! It's getting really difficult to manage this long term as I have 2 young children and run my own business . My gi seems convinced it is something to do with my gallbladder/biliary tract even though the tests are not showing anything apart the the raised Liver enzymes when I have an attack. Has anyone experience of having their gallbladder removed after negative tests and what was the result ?
  • Georgie66
    Georgie66

    Posted

    Hi Seb14, oh poor you ... i am sure you feel this is neverending! Maybe the H pylori triggered something in your system and although you don't have it now it has left your immune system low. Might be worth considering getting tested for candida as that manifest itself in all sorts of ways ... are you into alternative therapies as if so, kinesiology is a great way of testing the system out (i have it regularly and it has solved a few problems in the past). I did have stones, hence the removal of my gb but as the years have progressed it has meant that i have bile salt malabsorption so am on some great tablets that stop the upset tums (or at least reduce them dramatically). Again, might be worth discussing with your gastro? I hope you have someone near and dear that you can talk to as it is import to express yourself.
    • claire86345
      claire86345 Georgie66

      Posted

      Can I ask what tablets u take for your upset stomach please I'm having hell with upset stomach feeling sick pain in all of abdo

      Claire

  • blondewitch
    blondewitch

    Posted

    Hi there , from reading your symptoms it sounds to me like you could have either , A calculus cholecystitis or Cholangitis . The first one is inflammation of the gall bladder not caused by having gall stones. The second is inflammation of the bile duct leading from the gall bladder . Sometimes , a stone can have passed through the duct & if stuck , you would go yellow . If a stone had passed without getting stuck then your duct can become inflamed . Both are very painful , but cholangitis can be extremely serious causing sepsis . It sounds to me like the second one . Your liver function can be abnormal in both conditions but more so in Cholangitis.
  • Seb14
    Seb14

    Posted

    Thank you Georgie and boyzmummy I will look into the alternatives you mentioned and am already on a low fat diet. Blonde witch do you know if the cholangitis would show on ultrasound or mrcp? I also get a lot of nausea and back pain which I know can relate to gallbladder issues. My surgeon has suggested another ultrasound prior to making the decision on surgery (already had three) but is asking the head of radiology to to do it as reckons less experienced techs may miss something, When I'm bad I just want the gallbladder out as it is impacting so much on my everyday day life with my children and husband. But it's such a massive decision when the tests are all normal, I currently have another high fever of 38 and I am deliberating going to ae again. The only evidence I have is the raised alt and lipase and I fit most of the criteria female nearly 40, not over weight but problems started soon after pregnancy with my second child and have previously been on Yasmin pill. And the symptoms which seem to fit gallbladder.
    • l61899
      l61899 Seb14

      Posted

      Coukd be chronic pancreatits did you get answers?
  • boyzmummy
    boyzmummy

    Posted

    Hi Seb

    It is a hard decision to make and very frustrating for you, especially when it impacts on your life so much. I understand what your oing through and your surgeon sounds suprisingly sympathetic from my experiences of surgeons:-). Have they checked the pancreas?

  • blondewitch
    blondewitch

    Posted

    I think , in your case having your gall bladder out should not be an option unless it does turn out to be acalculus cholecystitis . I have a strong feeling it is Cholangitis which would go with your repeated attacks of sepsis symptoms. If it is this then taking out the gall bladder wont make any difference because it is the duct that is inflamed. Yes , it would show on USS as it would show as what we call echogenicity , also I am sure they will have looked at the pancreas & if that was inflamed , they would have mentioned it as pancreatitis is also dangerous.
  • Georgie66
    Georgie66

    Posted

    Please do let us know how your get on and if you want any support or advice i hope that we can help in some way. Take care.
  • Seb14
    Seb14

    Posted

    Yes boyzmummy I think I'm lucky to have a good Gi who spoke directly to the surgeon about my situation and asked him to see me as my previous surgeon described me as a mystery which isn't a lot of help and not very reassuring! Thank you everyone for your comments and support will keep you updated
  • boyzmummy
    boyzmummy

    Posted

    Hi Seb, how are you feeling now and how is your fever? The only reason I was thinking about pancreas trouble is that they cannot always see it on an US if there is gas ! Good luck today with the fever. Let us know how you get on
  • blondewitch
    blondewitch

    Posted

    That is true about the pancreas . Sometimes it can be obscured by gas , so they don't always pick it up. But they can identify the possibility of pancreatitis with blood tests .
  • Seb14
    Seb14

    Posted

    Temperature still high and feeling very shaky going to wait for my hubby to get home from work then might go down to a&e and get checked over but so don't want to be admitted again! As far as i remember the pancreas was okay apart from a slightly raised lipase level on the blood tests. I don't know if anyone's knows the answer to this but I was wondering if it was possible for a gallstone to pass through and therefore not show up on the scans as I have always had the ultrasounds a couple of days after my admission to hospital and have been on iv antibiotics at the time.
    • chris31422
      chris31422 Seb14

      Posted

      Seb, did you get the gallbladder removed and do you feel better? My mother had nothing come up on testing and she felt much better after gallbladder was removed. You dont need the gallbladder and it causes major issues to many people without showing up on testing all the time.

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