I had my gallbladder removed yesterday. My surgeon told me he saw a lot of inflammation in organs around my gallbladder. He also mentioned I had a fatty liver and that I am very lucky that it is not full blown cirrohsis (sp?) yet. He stated that it was due to my weight and eating habits. I have lost 115lbs in a year and am on a very low fat diet. I am still on a strict diet and plan to lose more. He said that when I lose all of the weight my liver problems should be resolved. I have done some research on the internet and it seems like there are a lot of other causes than obesity. I have had 8 surgeries in the past 5 years, I was told by my orthopedic surgeon that anesthesia can be hard on your liver as well as all of the pain medications I have been taking after all of these surgeries with tylenol.

Sorry about the rambling. I am very confused, he didn't provide me a lot of informtion about the liver yesterday....because we were focused on post-op stuff. I do see him in 3 weeks.

Any suggestions? Insight? links to wegsites with good informaiton?

pain medicine kicking in...need to go.....thank yall so much for all o f your suupport

Hi MicheleReneeV, thanks for posting.

I can probably advise you a little because I've gone through the same thing as you're going through now.

I had my gall bladder removed nearly 2 years ago after contracting gall bladder disease and a little under 6 months ago, I was also diagnosed with a fatty liver. I was not obese, but I was overweight.

The two most common causes of fatty liver are being overweight and drinking alcohol, although you can get it other ways too. It is most likely you have gotten it through being overweight, which only requires you to be as little as 10% overweight for it to hit you.

The good news is, you're already doing the right things in order to recover from this disease. A low fat diet, combined with weight loss and regular exercise are key to getting your liver recovered.

I actually just received my bloodywork back yesterday to find out my liver levels are back within normal ranges after nearly 5 months of diet, exercise and weight loss (ALT of 34).

cirrohsis is possible in later stages of liver disease, but unlikely if you attack the problem when you're still young. I'm 32 years old and my liver is now returning to normal.

Just stick with it and keep going as you are, because you sound like you're doing a good job. Fatty liver takes a long time to recover from, but you can definitely get over it and the end result is definitely worth the effort. I feel completely different now that I've lost the weight and have a lot more energy than before, so there's definitely a silver lining.

Just be sure to come back and let everyone know how you're doing. I went through hell getting over this bloody disease and have complete sympathy for anyone else going through it too. Talk a lot and be sure to let people know how you feel, because I've been through quite a few nasty little illnesses in my lifetime, but nothing could prepare me for what I went through with the near liver failure associated with fatty liver disease. You're not alone in this!

Cheers.

DanielM,

Thank you so much for your reply. I am sorry that you have been through so much. I guess I will find out more when I follow up with my surgeon in a couple of weeks. I am only 35. But, there were signs of liver damage after a couple of my surgeries. I don't know. I never imagined gallbladder surgey would be so painful. I will check back later. I need to go lay down. I really appreciate you taking the time to reply to my post.



Thank you,
Michele

Michele,

If you have any liver issues the time to take tylenol (acepamenophen) is NEVER! It alone can cause a fatty or a cirrhotic liver.
Any chemical poison, like alcohol, can cause fatty liver.

It sounds very much like your doctor took out your gall bladder for nothing...a common occurrence. You are still having the pain that he hoped to "cure" and now he is double talking his way out of that seeming fact.

Thank you Lenin,

The problem is I can't take NSAIDS, asprin, ibuprofen. They make me vomit blood. After one surgery when my blood work was showing problems with my liver I had to stop tylenol too....leading to only pure narcotics that I could take. I don't like that. I don't want to get addicted to pain meds.

I have been worried about my liver because with all of the surgeries I have had they have had to use meds with tylenol and have had to stay away from nsaid. I also wonder what impact the surgeries have on my liver. I have never been a heavy drinker. I drink maybe once a year. I know obesity could cause this....I just wonder if other things could do. I know I have taken a lot of tylenol in the past 4-5 years. I don't know.

I just had my gallbladder surgery on Wed. I am feeling somewhat better today. Everyone I talk to says the first three days are the worst. I am hoping it will be and that he didn't remove it for nothing. However, I do understand what you are saying. There is a great possibility he removed it for no reason.

Thank you for your post!

At least the pain meds he gave me dont have tylenol or nsaids in them. Mepraghen (sp?) just has the medicine and phenegran.



Thanks again!