First time poster....help! :confused: - Digestive Disorders Message Board

3Sisters · 10-20-2003, 02:31 PM

Hi all!

I am new to this message board and just had a few questions and concerns.

I have had on and off gallbladder region pain for about 2 months. In the past 2 weeks I have had to major attacks which brought me to my doctor. He said he was certain I had a 75% chance of gall stones. He ordered a complete blood work up (more blood taken from me than ever before in my life) and an ultrasound.
To my doctor's astonishment, the ultrasound concluded there were no stones. He still felt as though my symptoms were classic for gallbladder and ordered the HIDA scan with CCK injection. As most of you probably know, the normal function of a gallbladder is 35-40%. The HIDA scan showed mine to be at 11.2 UGH!, which they refer to as biliary dyskinesia.

I now have an appointment with a surgeon tomorrow and wanted to know from anyone with a similar situation to mine if there are no other options to surgery?

If not, what should I really expect following the surgery, assuming it can be done laprocsopicaly?

My REAL concern is my total PHOBIA of general anesthesia. I do not react well to it and have had a couple of really bad experiences in the past.

Sorry that I have rambled on here, I too, am a bit nervous about all of this.

I would appreciate any information, thoughts, or ideas any of you can share with me.

Thanks!
Heni

carebear73 · 10-20-2003, 03:22 PM

Hi .. I know how you feel. I just had my gallbladder out on Thursday. I didn't know if it was the right thing to do or not. I have a lot of gas from the laproscopic surgery. I don't feel too well. It could have a lot to do with my anxiety as I do have GAD. You could do a flush, although I am not sure how well they work. I went for 3 u/s and nothing showed up. I went for a hida scan and they said my gb did not fill up at all. They gave me a shot of morphine after 2 1/2 hours which did the trick. I don't get the pain after I eat anymore which is great... I'm just very bloated and gassy from the surgery. It's up to you whether or not you decide to have the surgery. I opted for it because I just had a general feeling of feeling ill all the time. Make sure you write down and ask the surgeon any questions you might have. I don't know if I helped any, if at all... but I'm sure everything will turn out just fine.

Katie G · 10-22-2003, 10:07 AM

Hi there. I think it would be a good idea to read through all the different posts on here from other posters talking about gall bladder issues. You will get a wide range of experiences to help base your decision. I had GB surgery (even after several "normal" test results), and couldn't have been happier to have the pain/discomfort over with. However, I'm also one of the 5-10% of GB surgery patients who now suffer bile salt diarrhea from GB removal - but this can be (and is for me) controlled by medication.

I had the lap procedure and it's no big deal. You will be monitored very closely during and after surgery to monitor your response to anesthesia. Your worry about the procedure is worse than the actual surgery.

Good luck and keep us posted,
Katie G

austin4 · 10-22-2003, 10:29 AM

^ agreed. It was not that big of a deal. Well worth it to get rid of those awful attacks. Good Luck.