Gallbladder; inflammation, pericholecystic fluid and below normal EF.

I had my gallbladder removed 4 weeks ago tomorrow after I was admitted with acute pancreatitis which is caused by alcohol or issues with your gall bladder and since I am not a drinker they said it must be my gall bladder. I had an ultrasound and they found no gallstones but said I should still have it removed and the sooner the better.

I'd had no classic signs of gall stones or inflammation but had a few episodes of severe stomach cramps and nausea after dinner followed by diarrhoea which felt like food poisoning but it kept happening about once a week in the weeks before I was admitted with severe abdominal pain which was the pancreatitis.

Anyway I had the surgery a few days after being admitted as they said I would continue to have issues otherwise. My pathology report came back showing thick bile and chronic inflammation so even though I had only had symptoms recently I've most likely had issues for a while and just didn't know.

The first few weeks after surgery were hard but I'm finally starting to feel a bit better and I'm glad I had it removed as now I won't need to worry in the future. So my advice would be if they say have it removed get it done as like lots of other posters you'll likely continue to have problems otherwise. Just make sure you give yourself time to recover. I was told it was minor surgery but it's not and it does take your body time to heal and adjust.

Hi Rainorshine

It's surprisingly common for people to have no actual gallstones, but still have the symptoms you describe. Ultrasound doesn't always pick up stones. Sometimes the stones are so small, they are like sand: this is termed sludge. So it may be that sludge is causing the problems or your gallbladder may be diseased and that is why your EF is low.

What you describe after eating pizza is a classic gallbladder attack. I had the same after eating a chilli in a pub. I also thought my stomach was about to burst.

Your gallbladder is unlikely to go back to being normal. Eventually, days, weeks or months ahead, you will have more attacks, I'm afraid. Even eating a low fat diet will not work indefinitely.

Gallbladder attacks are horrendous. Putting off surgery can cause all sorts of issues: ruq pain and right sided shoulder pain that lasted for four days at a time during which I couldn't eat or sleep, nausea, sickness and diarrhoea, jaundice (I was in danger of septic shock), the gallbladder can rupture leading to peritonitis, liver and pancreas issues, exhaustion etc etc etc.

Here is one cautionary tale. I had open surgery to remove my gallbladder as there were numerous large stones lodged in my bile duct. Two weeks later I was diagnosed with gallbladder cancer found by the labs. Three weeks after this, I had a liver resection to remove tissue that had been in contact with my gallbladder. I have been very lucky: most gallbladder cancers aren't found in time and they found no metastasis. This having my gallbladder out may have saved my life but I will need checkups for at least five years.

So please do not put off surgery - you have three children to think about. Meantime eat a low fat diet - definitely no pizza for a while. These days most surgeries are done laparoscopically and are treated almost as routine and done in day surgery. Recovery is two to three weeks and the possibility of all those symptoms I listed disappears.

Sorry to be so to the point.

Hi I'm due to have my GB removed in two days time very nervous and still keep wanting to cancel even at this late stage. I only get flare ups after eating take away good so very rare but I have had constant right rib ache since end October 2016. Ultrasound at Xmas showed Gallstones. I don't get all the classic symptoms and feel healthy and fine hence why I keep wanting to cancel surgery .. But after reading the comments to your discussion I know the best option is to get removed as could be other under lying issues. Just real nervous .. Fingers crossed all be ok