Gall Bladder.....Maybe?
Posted , 16 users are following.
have been feeling bad, off and on again for quite some time. I use the term flare up as it seems to hit pretty suddenly. (seemingly the day after eating greasy food not 100% on that) but when it "flares" it can last for a week or 2, with major bloating infrequent and small bm and discolored bm (orange to yellow tmi, I know but I think it is involved somehow) I have had constant low grade pain in my right shoulder blade for a very long time. 30 mins or so after eating I get nausea...I never vomit...just feel green. Energy is very low, tired all the time. I had a nissen fundoplication a year ago which fixed my reflux. I have seen a gastro doc with this been scoped both ends all is good, blood work is good only thing at all was a low anion gap. Kidney function is good, sonogram shows normal gall bladder, hida scan shows 87%ejection fraction. Surgeon says biliary dyskonesia and wants to remove my gall bladder. I am very hesitant to remove it knowing it tests ok. I am great with removing it if it will fix me but would be pretty p*ssed off if I get it out and still have these problems, I want to be back to my old self before this started a couple of years ago. I am hoping someone has had similar problems or can offer some advice as my regular doctors say nothing is wrong.
Halp....please....
1 like, 102 replies
burner
Posted
Gastro doc has referred my to a surgeon. Looks like my Gall bladder will be coming out...going to try to hold off till the first of the year because of insurance deductibles. Dr. said if I start running a fever it is an emergency to go straight to the ER and tell them about my HIDA scan. She is prescribing me some medication that may help withe the nausea while I wait. Ready to feel better and get my energy back. I can't wait.
Also would like to add the "orange" bms I was previously talking about are actually "clay" colored and are the sign of a blocked or damaged gall bladder.
katherine42413 burner
Posted
It all sounds that you're now heading in the right direction. Ahh yes clay coloured bowel movements are classic symptoms.
Keep us updated. Take care/
burner
Posted
burner
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Well here goes......Met with the surgeon, he agrees with the hida scan it's time for gall bladder to come out. Surgery on Tuesday. Sucks...the last couple of days I haven't been feeling so bad. It puts doubt in your mind but the HIDA scan showed "Chronic Colecsystitis"
Will update after surgery. I hope my 3+ year and 20+thousand dollar mystery illness is fixed.
kara22759 burner
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burner
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My gall bladder is gone, I have four fancy new holes in my gut....along with the 5 previous from reflux surgery and I look like I took a load of buck shot to the stomach.
Surgery wasn't bad, started at 5:45am was home by 11 am. Pain is tolerable as long as I take my meds on time, gets a little sporty if I miss a dose. So far I have pretty much eaten what I want to...we will see how long that lasts and so far no raging diarhea, the opiates may have a little to do with that tho... Will update as soon as there is something to report. I want to keep this going for a bit if it can even help a single person like me battling a mystery illness.
burner
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Off all pain meds, back to work....mostly. Still no diarrhea. Can pretty much eat what I want. I have been staying away from deep fried foods....I didn't eat those much in the first place. Still have abnormally colored stool and gas, lots of that.
andy39896 burner
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lynda20916 andy39896
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Well, if you have gallbladder problems, your stools will be floating in caustic yellow liquid. That's because your gallbladder is pushing out too much bile. If your doctor has done a stool culture, they just look at the stool chemistry. They don't even think to look at the bile. A colonoscopy won't reveal gallbladder problems, unless the bile has irritated the large intestine. Have you had one?
Also, at least in the US, boys and young men are developing autoimmune diseases of the colon more frequently. The reason is unknown. But it's worth looking into, too. A nephew of a friend of mine was diagnosed at age 9.
There's also a condition that's caused by the body stopping the production of a hormone that allows the bile to be reabsorbed during digestion.
Heredity really doesn't matter. It's a mistake for a doctor to say, "you're too young to have this." It's just an arrogant opinion that could do you harm.
It doesn't matter how old you are. If you had sludge when you had the ultra-sound you have even more now. The body doesn't stop producing sludge.
Ibs is just a catch-all diagnosis for many conditions that give the patient diarrhea. Telling you that you have ibs means your doctor isn't interested in finding out what's going on. I suggest you get a referral to a gastroenterologist, who would know how to diagnose and treat you. If you're already seeing a gastroenterologist, go find another.
burner andy39896
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andy39896 burner
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andy39896 lynda20916
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burner andy39896
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I had one hida that came back good. I demanded a second one 2 years later that showed my gall bladder was trashed with chronic cholecsystitis. I also got nauseated when I took the test...in fact nausea was my primary symptom. I haven't had nausea since it was removed.
andy39896 burner
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burner andy39896
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I didn't have the traditional sharp upper right quadrant pain that most seem to have. I occasionally had a dull ache in my shoulder blade that seemed to get worse when I was feeling really sick. Pale stool too. It would appear mine had been bad for a long time as my body hasn't really changed after removal, no diarrhea etc....just no nausea. Yay.
lynda20916 andy39896
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Good that you're going to a specialist. I think it would help you more if you researched those diseases and the hormone issue yourself.
You need to be informed when you deal with the gastroenterologist, and work with him or her, not just blindly accept what they propose. Even if you're scared to death, and lots of us are, and always feeling bad, stand up for yourself. If you have knowledge that you have gained, you'll know when someone is fobbing you off or giving you a load of bunk. For instance, the statement that you were "too young" was ridiculous. Let us know how you get on!
andy39896 burner
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burner andy39896
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I have no more nausea my appetite has returned overall I feel much better I still have fatigue. It appears I may also have small intestine bacterial overgrowth they’re looking at treating me for right now. I was on ppi meds for over 20 years.