gall bladder? huh?

[BairwithMe 144]

Hi all. I see lots of people posting about having a gall bladder scan and others talking about having the gall bladder removed. My surgeon has not mentioned one thing about my gall bladder. I'm pretty sure I still have mine. Have never had a surgery to remove it. So my question is.. what is the deal with the gall bladder and gastric surgery? Any help is greatly appreciated. Should I be asking my surgeon about this? My date is Oct 19 -2015. I have my last class tomorrow Sept 22. I wont see my surgeon but a general doctor for a physical and a class on what happens the day of surgery and how to care for myself afterwards..thanks for your help

[LoseItKacy 347]

I work in the medical field so I know a thing or two about the gallbladder.

1. The reason it's talked about a lot is because with rapid weight loss there is the chance of gallstones developing or inflammation of the gallbladder. When the gallbladder gets aggravated it causes a lot of pain and can make people sick. So it's removed

2. If you still have your gallbladder some doctors like to run test to look for sludge or stones. If there is evidence the doctors will typically remove it while doing your weight loss procedure. I mean they are already inside you so why not?

3. If you haven't had gallbladder problems in the past and there's no evidence of issues most doctors won't touch it. There's a rule in the surgical world that "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". You don't NEED your gallbladder but it's job is to store bile and it is used to break down oils that are ingested. So it's nice to have.

Edited September 21, 2015 by LoseItKacy

[ellie123 374]

Rapid weight loss is known to cause issues with the gallbladder. Formation of gallstones is also very common. Following my Lapband surgery in 2007, sure enough I developed issues with it. so now that I am going into gastric sleeve surgery my doctor will go ahead and remove my gallbladder all at the same time. 3 for one deal with the band removal . I'm going in in a week... So nervous! Good luck!

[BairwithMe 144]

Thanks guys!! lots of good info. well since he hasnt said anything? I guess I am ok. I have never had any issues. so we will see. I appreciate the comments!! love this place and the support!!

[jacks89 51]

Loseitkacey said it best! in my case it was odd. My GI told me I had a couple gallstones but if it wasn't bothering me then I should leave it alone..so I didn't plan on getting it removed. But my surgeon gave me a suggestion on removing it bc I'll probably get them in the future and with my already small stones it'll cause much concern. So after much thought I agreed to have it taken out. And good thing too! After surgery my surgeon came in and told me he fixed my hiatal hernia (which I didn't know I had!) And took out my gallbladder. He told me it was a good decision to have it removed because I had a couple big stones and they would've caused me an issue in the future! I'm just wondering why my GI told me not to worry about it while my surgeon said I had big stones..smh. I'm definitely changing GI's when I fly back home!