Gallbladder - reassurance needed

[Usual2usual]

Previous member rejoined hence new username etc.

DH has been having what we suspect is gallbladder episodes for over a year now. Everything I have read suggests gallbladder including the fact that just before it started he went on a diet and lost a large amount of weight very quickly which seems to spark gallbladder issues in some.

Of course the GP hasn't deemed it serious enough for an appointment (or even a message/phonecall as all contact has been through the nurse practitione on the myGP app).

Anyway....he has been prescribed various things all of which make no difference as they are all things to treat IBS or stomach ulcers and he has repeatedly told them where the (severe) pain is but it goes in one ear and out the other with them.

So tonight after yet another episode of screaming agony he has finally gone to A&E (he is very much a 'don't waste hospitals time type) and because it is the middle of the night im stuck home alone with the kids worried sick.

Can anyone fill me in on gallbladder issues (or issues that might seem like gallbladder attacks but aren't?)

Has

If it is his gallbladder then the only solution is to have the bastarding organ out. A&E is the right place to be for that because if he’s in the middle of an episode they can refer him for emergency surgery and bypass the otherwise lengthy waiting list.

Hopefully they will just whip it out for him. It’s a fairly minor surgery and will instantly resolve his pain and illness. I feel for him - I have never experienced pain as severe as a gallstone attack and would rather go through labour than an attack. My life was transformed by having my gallbladder out.

Let me know if you have any specific questions! Happy to fill you in on my experience.

Oooo I had mine out and I was like a new woman! Felt a million times better.

Thanks everyone - were you all fobbed off by your GP at first too? I know it must be painful as DH has an incrediby high pain threshold (he gets dental work without being numbed up etc.) so if he is saying it hurts then it must reeeeeally hurt.

Also I suppose I should ask did it come and go with everyone else? He can go months with nothing then suddenly two/three big attacks in a week.

I was fobbed off for years by my GP, given tablets to reduce my stomach acid. They didn’t work, so I would go back and be told it was “breakthrough symptoms” and be given a different tablet that did the same thing.
Changed GPs, went to see the new one, told him what had been happening and he immediately said “gallstones”. Proven by a scan. Had it removed, never been better. I had to go and eat nothing more than 5% fat on anything whilst I was waiting, but it was worth it. A&E know between midnight and 2am is gallstone time as many attacks happen then.

I'm waiting on gallbladder surgery. I think it should be very shortly.

The pain is intense. I've not had kids, but mothers who've had gallstones have said childbirth is a walk in the park in comparison.

I'm not sure why your GP is reluctant to investigate. It's relatively easy to diagnose via ultrasound, and sometimes your LFTs are raised. I spoke to my GP this time last year so during the pandemic and said I suspected gallstones and was proved right.

If gallstones is untreated, there is a high risk of pancreatitis which is nasty.

In the meantime a low fat diet is advised as fatty foods can bring on an attack.

Yes the attacks can come and go. I had my gallbladder out 9 years ago now. Like you husband's I think mine was triggered by losing weight.
I never got doctor. Then I suffered a really bad attack and went 5 times in 10 days! I did get refered for a scan and was told to try clear liquid diet. Even when I went yellow my doctor wasn't overly worried and just prescribed me stronger painkillers!
It was honestly the worst pain I ever had. I seen another doctor and she admitted me to hospital

I had a major gallstone problem, four months after giving birth. Trust me, gallstones are more painful than labour, and I had a 20 hour, totally natural labour, no pain relief, with a back to back baby

I've no idea why the GP won't take it seriously. It kicked off last April at the height of lockdown so at first I thought maybe just because of that but they are back to full service pretty much now but still won't see DH they just keep saying there no need to see a doctor.

In between attacks he just seems to forget about it so he probably isn't as persistent as he should be with them and so they think its not that bad maybe.

Yes, the attacks can come and go. At first I had weeks / months between attacks, then it escalated to attacks every couple of days.

I was lucky that my excellent GP referred me instantly for a diagnostic ultrasound and then to the surgical team. However, while I was waiting for my surgical appointment I had an absolutely horrific attack that lasted hours. I made an emergency appointment with my GP, and because the attack was ongoing right then she was able to refer me straight to hospital. They then took it out a couple of days later. So I was able to bypass weeks on the waiting list.

Sounds like I’m really lucky with my GP, she’s very proactive.