confused and looking for some quick answers

January 22, 2004

hi everyone...

i'm looking for a bit of help.

it has been suggested by medical doctors (who i trust) that i have my

gallbladder removed laproscopically and i'm looking into alternatives

before i agree to do this. i've been reading a lot about flushes and

the like and am not sure that i'm a candidate or that they may help

me...if anyone has some info for me i'd appreciate it......

i've had ibs and a hiatal hernia for a number of years. a little

over a year ago, i was found to have elevated liver counts, which led

to a sonogram, at which time gallstones (many small ones, apparently)

were found. i was asymptomatic, though, and no treatment was

prescribed. Subsquent blood tests showed normal liver counts.

i don't usually eat fried or greasy foods and am not overweight.

about five weeks ago, i did eat badly, fried and fatty, two such big

meals in one day. a day later i started feeling lousy. i felt

feverish, although i didn't have fever, was belching a lot, felt

nauseous, did not have intense pain but rather a bad feeling on both

sides of my body (upper gi), just a bit around to my back, and did

not feel like eating anything. my doctor sent me for a sonogram

which again showed the gallstones but not much change in the

gallbladder wall. i then went for a HIDA test which showed a low 10%

reading.

this seems to indicate that gallstones aside, my gallbladder is just

not working properly and is diseased. (after about two weeks most of

my symptoms, other than some nausea and a slightly dull sometimes

ache on my right side under my ribcage, subsided.)

the doctors feel that even if i were to eliminate the gallstones,

with a flush, for example, or any other means i'd still have this bad

gallbladder that should come out. there is also a feeling that the

flush can cause a stone to get stuck in the bile duct.

sorry for the long background, but i'm not sure what to do. i've

also spoken to someone who has had his gallbladder removed and is

quite pleased with the results. i'm not sure if all i've read about

the flushes do not apply to me because of my low functioning

gallbladder.

any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

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