Suspected Gallbladder problem

I was in a&e with sweats, pain and vomiting last year. Turns out I had a blocked stone. Thankfully it unblocked on its own, but it did affect my liver test results and I turned yellow. I was in hospital 4 days until they returned to normal.

hi

well strangely enough my gallstones were discovered by a raised liver function blood test. i was then sent for a ultrasound scan and thats when they discovered the gall stones. The two organs are close so

seems they can often get a false reading. for years i had had what i thought was sever indegestion that would last for hours when in actual fact these were a gall bladder attack. so the suspected problem with my liver was ruled out and i subsequently had the stones removed. however i have to add that when they were doing the op they did discover a minor problem with a my liver which they sorted there and then. id push for a scan gall

bladder attacks can be mistaken for a suspected heart attack

My doctor suspected I had gallstones and sent me for scans etc., then one evening she rang me to say I ought NOT to drink in the evenings (alcohol). I told her I didn't drink at all and this seemed to give her confirmation once and for all that I had gallstones. I too suffered some horrible attacks; the best way to avoid these is to make sure you don't consume any fat - your husband's diet has to be zero fat. I had my gallbladder removed in 2015. I'm not sure why but gallbladder issues do seem to lead to a kind of cirrohsis of the liver associated with gallbladder disfunction.

I am not suggesting for a minute that Ursodeoxycholic acid tabs will reverse your husbands conditions but it may well be worth researching that way of eradicating gall stones of cholesterol type. If the gall stones are not too big to contemplate the dissolution method it may well be worth seeing if that is right for your husband who must be the one to choose what he will do.

Incidentally my liver function was not 100 percent but then again that may have been because I used to misbehave by drinking loads of whiskey yonks ago but then again it may have been due to the gall bladder with stones in it and the swelling that was my gall bladder being upset affecting my liver. The liver may not be able to get bile into the gall bladder if blockage occurs.

The utra sound/ ct scans should reveal what's what........ It is interesting to see that Urso is given to certain patients with liver chirrosis to 'help' their liver but I do not know the intricacies of that.

I would push your GP to have a scan for gallstones. My cousin has recently had her gall bladder removed following an attack of pancreatitis which also affected her liver, kidneys, heart and lungs. Her symptoms sound very similar to your husband. This had been the latest of several attacks and she was very ill. It has now been 6 weeks since her operation, and after a very slow start she is starting to resume a normal and pain free life.

Thanks everyone for your answers they have eased my mind. The doctor said he would refer him for a scan but its a waiting game. He doesnt drink much anyway, and has not gone on a slimming worlds style diet low to zero fat with lots of veg/fruit. We are due to go on holiday in the summer so am hoping he has a diagnosis by then for insurance

Hi Ann, The Gall Bladder is connected to the Liver so it follows that the Liver gets affected.

I would suggest you do not worry at this time even though it is a very painful thing to have a Gall Bladder attack. I have just had a surgeon tell me that my symptoms were not of the Gall Bladder, yet everything else has been ruled out. However on finding out I had sludge in it, he was then prepared to take it out!

Gall Stone issues will be related to eating and more so fatty foods, so what did he eat prior to the attack. Once you have an attack and depending on the issue, it may subside and go away or may become persistent!

The Gall Bladder can also cause Pancreatitis issues as well.

So once he is over this attack you need to be like a detective with what he eats and what causes any problems and this is I am sad to say is the only way of finding out.

As a rule of thumb, the pain starts in the right hand side under Rib cage and then can go up the back to right shoulder or it can run across the chest which mimics a heart attack and it is awful I have to say. Many a night I have been on the toilet with high temperature and thinking I was going to die. Sickness and Diarrhea are both signs of Gall Bladder but at this time of year gets confused with the Flu Winter vomiting bug.

I am afraid only you and he will work this out so in the next 4 weeks be very mindful of what he eats. It is no fun as you will find the diet to stop these attacks is very limited, to the extent of losing rapid weight for not being able to eat. If this was his first attack he maybe lucky and that it was a stuck stone and has passed it through, these stones can get stuck in the Bile ducts and which is what causes the pain.

If he does have further attacks a CT scan or Ultra Sound scan will find out. If nothing is found then a HIDA scan is the last resort to find out if the Gall Bladder is functioning properly. it is also worth noting colours of the stool, as these will also help in determining what is what.

Kind regards and hope he has no more issues.