Gallbladder symptoms can really be a real pain

If you read last week’s column you know that this week’s article is about gallbladders.

The gallbladder that small pouch that sits just under your liver stores bile that helps your body digest fat. Before a meal the gallbladder is full and in response to signals squeezes out digestive juices into the small intestine through small tubes called ducts.

When the bile crystallizes, and no one seems to know why that happens, gallstones form. Although often harmless and painless they can be just the opposite and create intense discomfort, nausea, inflammation and may necessitate surgery.

The irony of some of our internal organs is that we really don’t need them. Weird. But you can have your gallbladder out and have no problems with either your health or your digestion. As a matter of fact, more than 500,000 people undergo surgery for gallstones in the U.S. each year.

More than 800,000 hospitalizations are attributed to gallbladder issues annually and one in 10 of us will have gallstones at some point in our lives. Quite a nuisance caused by a body part we can live without.

It’s not just about gallstones. Biliary colic is the most common gallbladder disease causing intermittent pain in the mid- or right portion of the abdomen. According to University of Maryland Medical Center’s website, episodes often occur at the same time of day typically several hours after eating.

The pain is described as a steady gripping or gnawing pain in the right abdomen near the rib cage and can radiate to the upper back or up under your breast bone. Nausea and vomiting are common. Changing position, taking a pain reliever, passing gas and belching won’t relieve the symptoms that will subside by themselves in an hour or so.

Symptoms of acid reflux or gerd are not consistent with gallbladder problems, so taking antacids will be futile. What isn’t futile is making an appointment to see your medical practitioner to diagnose correctly what’s going on with your body.

Acute cholecystitis occurs when stones or sludge block the duct. The symptoms are similar to those of biliary colic but are more persistent and severe. The abdominal pain is intense and constant and may continue for days. It’s not uncommon to run a fever.

If left untreated, acute cholecystitis can progress to gangrene or perforation of the gallbladder. Infections can occur. See your healthcare professional as soon as possible, or go to your nearest emergency care facility.

Chronic, or often called dysfunctional, gallbladder disease (chronic cholecystitis) involves gallstones and mild inflammation.

In such cases the gallbladder may become scarred and stiff. Symptoms include gas, nausea and abdominal discomfort after meals. If you suffer pain and chronic diarrhea (four to ten bowel movements each day for a period of three months) you may have chronic gallbladder disease and need medical attention.

Stones lodged in the common bile duct (that’s the tube that leads out of your gallbladder) can cause similar problems to chronic cholecystitis, but may also include symptoms such as jaundice, dark urine, light stool, rapid heartbeat, abrupt drop in blood pressure, fever, chills and severe pain in the upper abdomen.

You probably don’t need to be told to seek immediate emergency care, and you’re right. Go to the emergency department now.

And, please, do not drive yourself when in pain. Call 911 and they’ll dispatch an ambulance with expert medical technicians to assist you.

Kathy Hubbard is a trustee on Bonner General Hospital Foundation Board. She can be reached at kathyleehubbard@yahoo.com, 264-4029.