still having problems after gall bladder removal

[Babyramone]

Hi have posted about this before.
Had my gall bladder removed in august since then have had 3 attacks similar to when I had gall stones. Had the 3rd atttack on friday and it was awful. Nearly phoned NHS24 but after taking both cocodamol and diclofenac got it under control. Anyway will be visiting G.P tomorrow but wondered if any onw else has experienced this.
I googled (bad idea i know)and there is a condition called Post Cholecystectomy Syndrome.
Has anyone had this?
I seem to remember someone mentioning this on a previous post, may be wrong though.

[Badvocatyuletide]

Hi.
I had my gb out on 30th nov.
I sadly got a chest infection post op which I am sure hasn't helped but I am getting horrendous back, rib and shoulder pain :(
I go back to see the cons on jan 8th..any tips? I don't want to take heavy pain killers and I have 2 young dc but it's pretty grim.
I am also trying to cut out wheat slough I have to say up to now it hasn't helped :(

[Lancs1]

You may find this abstract useful, published in the medical journal Gastrointestinal Endoscopy in 2008. Bear in mind that this is a small study and would need to be further investigated with a larger study.

BACKGROUND: Microlithiasis has been identified as a cause of idiopathic acute pancreatitis in patients with an intact gallbladder. Microlithiasis has also been identified in the bile of some patients who have undergone cholecystectomy. However, it is unknown whether bile microlithiasis causes postcholecystectomy pain.
OBJECTIVE: To identify bile microlithiasis in patients with postcholecystectomy pain and to investigate the therapeutic effect of ursodeoxycholic acid (urso) on such patients with microlithiasis in the bile.
DESIGN: Prospective randomized trial.
SETTING: Tertiary medical center.
PATIENTS: Patients with postcholecystectomy pain and bile crystals.
INTERVENTIONS: Urso treatment.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS: The severity and frequency of right upper-quadrant abdominal pain were compared with and without urso treatment, and before and after urso treatment.
RESULTS: A total of 118 patients with postcholecystectomy pain were screened for the study. Twelve patients (10%) were identified with bile crystals. In the first phase, 6 of these patients received urso treatment, whereas the other 6 patients did not receive urso treatment. In the second phase, the latter 6 patients were given the urso treatment. After using urso for a few months, their biliary-type abdominal pain significantly improved or resolved. In the control group, there was no improvement in symptoms. There was a significant difference between the 2 groups (P = .01).
LIMITATIONS: Single-center, small number of patients.
CONCLUSIONS: This study provided evidence that supports the hypothesis that bile microlithiasis is indeed a cause for postcholecystectomy pain. Patients with such postcholecystectomy pain may benefit from a microscopic examination of bile for crystals or microlithiasis, and urso treatment if bile crystals are identified.

[nadarayon]

i had my gull bluder remove 15 years ago and still having the same attack horrible pain,,ive been in the hospital many times ,blood test always shows inflame in the Pancreas,last week i had a Hysterectomy,sinse 3 days each time I eat or take my medication im having same attack before my gol bluder remove with vometing,im in alot of pain im scard to eat or take antibiotic ,,,i liv in fear

[Bethyboos]

I am writing this I case it could help anyone.

I had ERCP and then gallbladder removed last September. From about November last year I started getting the same pain as before gallbladder removed. The first pain lasted about 2 hours. After that I had the pain about twice a week and I learnt that if I kept drinking water and burping and lean forward then the intense (labour like) pain would go after about 10 minutes. The pain normally comes after eating large amounts of food or ice cream or margarine.

Saw GP and he gave me omeprazole but it didn't help.

Saw private consultant and he told me this intense pain is not normal after GB removal. Had scan and MRI and it turned out to be a stone in bile duct. It is not blocking duct but travelling up and down. Must have got there after last ERCP but before GB removed. Have to have ERCP again.

[Bethyboos]

I want to add that the ultrasound scan did not show the stone but the MRI did so make sure you push for an MRI.

[nannymary1]

Thank goodness others have had problems after having their gall bladder removed, I thought I was going mad! I am unable to toleratevery much fat, if I do the outcome is not pleasant and very swift. It is over 6 years since my op and I have just had the most miserable holiday with really severe pain. I am due to hae a scan in a couple of weeks but in the meantime I have been perscribed Buscopan which does seem to cut down the time of the attacks.

[Qhuier18]

hello is anybody here knows about the urso treatment ? i wanna know about it .

1 month ago i undergo surgery (gallbladder removal) due to ihave full of galstones , 1 week after the surgery i found out that the pain that i'm having before the surgery is still there , until now i'm having the pain almost everyday and im tired of it. then i found this thread and read about the urso treatment research and been thinking of theres anyone else knows about it ? i really want to solve this pain . it kills me everyday i am a mom of two kid. its sad that i cant even took them care because of this pain .

[claire12004]

hi guys i had my Gall bladder removed in feb 14 wish i had kept the damn thing had first attack in nov 13 thought i was having a heart attack. back pain stomach pain sickness sweats i had never experience pain like it. finally had it removed in Feb thought great get my life back to normal. little did i know nearly 1 year on from first attack i`m still in agony cant work due to stomach pain bloating constant diorreha. i have just had a colonoscopy everything was normal, was prescribed omesprozle for acid back in Aug this year absolute waste of time. i cant even eat a roast dinner (without gravy) after 2 mins of eating im on the toilet, if i knew then what i knew now i would never had the surgery. now i have to see yet another consultant to see if i can have endoscopy (camera down throat) all blood test have come back normal( liver, kidneys pancreas ) anyone else having these problems? i was on Tramadol and diclofenic which i stopped after surgery as i didnt want to get depended on them and they made like a zombie lol. please help if anyone has these same problems.

[rivetinla]

I just had gallbladder removed 9 days ago and everything has been fine until today. I am experiencing excrusitating back in my lower lumbar on both left and right. Deep breaths or any movement makes the pain worse. Anything I should worry about or will this pass?????

[PinkSparklyElephant]

claire could the omesprozole be causing problems? I was put on lansoperazole after I had my gallbladder removed and it made me feel constantly sick, tired and generally ill. My GP was going to send me for an endoscopy but I decided to try coming off the lansoperazole and I feel a whole lot better and didn't have to have the endoscopy.

[MNL0515]

I had my gallbladder removed in April of this year. Found out I had gallstones while pregnant and had the removal surgery shortly after giving birth. I was one of the ones that had hundreds of tiny stones. I was in and out of the emergency so much while I had gallstones I didn't know what to do. And now that my gallbladder has been removed, I'm still having the same attacks as when I had it. I'm currently typing this while having an attack. I don't know what to do. My GP has put a referral in for me to see a GI doctor but I don't know what to do in the meantime to help with these episodes. I just want some relief and to be pain free

[Nikki1L]

All all, just stumbled on this and well I had my gall bladder removed 12yrs ago at 30 (I was told I was quite young for this) I too had acute pancreatitis I have never really been big on drinking. I have suffered constantly since, after the op it took me nearly a year to be able to eat properly was running for the loo with in minutes never sure what end to stick down the loo, this did eventually ease but have had pains ever since, I have put the weight back on (probably a little to much) but it's seems there is no reason to the pains I seem to really suffer with an acid like pain, some more intense than most to be honest, have been to the doctors many times over the years, have too been fobbed of with it being IBS, I have done food diaries to try to pin point triggers, was never big on fatty foods so it is not that but just can't get to the bottom of it. I too was not told about and of these problems that could come as a result of the op.. I am at my wits ends as sitting here typing this, with the same acid feeling and all I have eating is a brown bread sandwich with no marg/butter only sliced chicken, and have only had 2 coffees today what is wrong with that? I had lanprazole in the early days that didnt seem to do a thing so stopped. I was told by a dietitian, to cut out dairy, wheat and gluten, fatty foods red meats, but what does that really leave. I live with it most days and well just get on with it now but if any of you lovely people have and tips or food tips that would be great x

[yetwig]

I had my gb removed 2 years ago every month or so for 6 months I was having the same pains as before :( so I cut out most thing dairy and gone low fat. It has made a huge difference :) no more attacks x

[whyme23]

I had my gallbladder removed 1 year ago after living with the pain for almost a year, My first few attacks only lasted an hour or two and at the time I thought it was food poisoning. The attacks were spread out in the beginning, one a month or they would only last a few minutes so I would forget about it. The month before I went to the hospital was the worse, I was having an attack once every few days and they would last 12+ hours. The day I went to the hospital I had been having an attack for 48 hours straight, I went in they took blood and did a ultrasound test and sent me home telling me someone would call me in a few days. Well they called 2 hours later telling me I had acute pancreatitis and needed to come in right away, had surgery to remove my gallbladder the next day. I have felt great up until last night when I had an attack out of nowhere, same unbearable pain with sweating in the same location. I'm not really sure what to expect now. I found this forum post after searching google for help, I have read every post and it has helped me, knowing I'm not alone. I think I'm going to make a doctors appointment on Monday and hope for the best, also going to drastically change my diet low fat/low cholesterol.

The main reason I wanted to make this post was to share a way to reduce the pain and make it easier to breath during an attack, I found that if I sit on the edge of my bed and roll up a pillow and put it in the middle of my back and lay back on it, it reduces the pain by about half and allows me to breath in without the sharp pain.

I hope this helps.

[marycharlotte4]

i had my gallbladder removed 3 yrs ago still had pain after but milder then it seemed to settle down however recently I have had 3 quite serious attacks after removal the scan showed no stones in the bile duct . where do i go from here i have lanzoprazole but it doesnt stop me being violently sick and in pain

[StalyB219]

I had my gall bladder removed 10 months ago after 2 years of pain and tests. I have recently experienced small attacks similar to what I used to get but less intense. A few nights ago however I experienced a full on gall bladder attack like no other, lasted all night, sweating, excruciating pain in my back and upper stomach area, I literally rolled around in the floor unable to breath. Nearly went to hospital like I have before for morphine. Am so devastated that it's back!!! Will see Gp tomorrow but feel validated reading this thread, I just think no one knows how bad this is when it strikes.

[joyjo1664]

I had my gallbladder removed Aug 2014. I have noticed that I get bloated and uncomfortable and sometimes a dull ache and very occasionally I feel sick. My whole stomach area aches and occasionally I get a sharp pain on my left side just under my ribs. Does any of this sound familiar to anyone else as I am worried and GP not taking any notice

[70isaLimitNotaTarget]

Yes- joyjo
I have/had pain before my gallbladder removal on both sides .
The right side was a stabbing, pinching pain like a large blade through my belly to my back

Left side more a stabbing pinching but in one place.
Horrible bloating and daily loose bowels ( nice )

Long story short.
All tests showed nothing sinister but Diverticular Disease.
Been following Low FODMAP for a week (I;m a vegetarian, non smoker non drinker. Don't eat butter (yuk) , minimal cheddar (hurts) . Lactose free milk made no difference .

Have cut out completely : dairy,gluten,wheat, onions,garlic (and milk chocolate), orange juice, beans

Much improved.
I'm not bloaty. I'm not in pain,

It's tough, I'm only a week in and it's bloody hard. I chose to be vegetarian. I chose not to smoke or drink.
I didn't choose the pain or the horrific loo experience every day

But, I'll get there.

Might be worth a try?

[joyjo1664]

70isaLimitNotaTarget Thank you for this answer. You descried it so well the stabbing, pinching pain like a large blade through my belly to my back and the blotting
I wasn't sure from your post if you had these problem before having your gallbladder remover or after.
I am still having them and I will follow your advice and start changing my diet and see if that makes a difference. Once again thank you for taking time to help me

[tlbevan]

I had my gall bladder removed about 15 years ago. I have never had another attack since, and have been pretty lucky. I was told at the time that gall stones can still develop in the tubes so be careful. However I have to say that i was not given any dietry advice and subsequently put on about 2 stone in a few years, which I have managed to get rid of now. The past week I have been suffering again, the old symptoms have come back and only ibuprofen and paracetamol can help me (I can't take co codamol). so rest assured, most of the time the operations are a great sucess, but be careful as your weight may creep up.

[Vodders1975]

I am in hospital with the same thing had gallbladder out but after the op 4 days later am bk in pain even worse than before. Got ct scan tomo but if it don't show anything I be worried they will send me home. U said your test come bk negitive so I don't understand why u had the other op. Am
Confused as u results showed nothing. I would be great full for any feed bk you have got and thank you Wendy x

[deannaswaniger]

I had my gallbladder removed 11 years ago about after a year I started having pain like I swear I still had my gallbladder I seen a doctor several times since then I have been tested by everything under the sun most things multiple times my test are always normal then 3 years ago I had ercp and they said my bile ducts were full of debris but yet none of there imaging ever picks it up I was doing the best I had ever done and now I'm having problems again Im writing this in hopes someone might have a solution or a treatment other then having procedures every few years the gi doctor told me they don't like to do the procedures because it increases your risk for pancreatitis and ultrasounds and mri's never show the debris this is a very misersble condition that I have lived with for several years I wish everyone luck in finding there own diagnosis

[kaza1273]

hi,after seeing your stories i thought i would share mine,i am 42 years old never been ill in my life and this started 2 years ago now,severe pain attacks ambulance visits to hospital,being sick etc after 6 mths of being ill i was told i had gall stones,so finally had the opp in april 2014,but after waking from the opp i was in the same pain,doctors said in was in my head and it was pain from opp ??? i told them it wasnt but left it 3 weeks but attacks started almost instantly,agresive pain,flusehes being sick back and forth to hospital and doctors who have done ercp .scans,mri ultrs sound,blood tests ec bu they still say they cant find any thing..........so two years later im on so many drugs to stop pain but noting working now and pain getting absolutly mental been admited to a&E again as attacks so bad,im on oromorph/tramadol/diazepan,co-cadmol,ferico patches ,lidocane patches,anti sickness,still suffer from wind and bloated stomach im at witts end now after another 6 myhs wait finally got appontment for pain management on thursday 25th augest 2016 as i am writing this i am in so so much pain so more meds..........really given up as they dont seem like they want to help me any more and just fob me off on medication :( pain is all left hand inbewtween shoulder blade and lower down and attacks are same as if gall bladder was still there ???

[11inamc]

Hi I don't no if any one will reply but I would be very appreciated if someone did .. To make a long story short I got my gall bladder out a week ago today... I took an attack this morning vomiting etc the pain was as bad as b4 .. I vomiting twice and pain left after taking co codmail.. An hour later !! The pain still niggling right now !! Can't believe I'm going true this only a week after op

[alwaysme22]

Sorry, it's miserable to be still in pain when you think you are finally sorted.

Same thing happened to me a week after gall bladder removal, stupidly I thought it was just after affects of the op and tried to ignore thinking it would get better. Turned out to be 4 stones still stuck in the bile duct and I ended up with pancreaitis (spelling!)

Hopefully, this isn't your problem but if no improvement back to doctor as can be serious if ignored.