Varanasi Hospital

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Health

Gallstones: A Recurring Problem And Its Ultimate Solution

Gallstones are one of the most common digestive problems in men and women. Almost 15% of the population of India has gallstones. Many times a person with gallstones don’t realize at all unless ultrasound scans are done. These are called silent gallstones, as they project no symptoms. However, most of the time, there are a lot of painful symptoms that are associated with gallstones, particularly as their size increases. Pain in the abdomen, nausea, vomiting are some of the symptoms of gallstones. The major way of treating gallstones is Laparoscopic gallbladder surgery.

However, in this surgery, the essential way of treatment is the removal of the gallbladder. Many people try to avoid having this surgery as they don’t want to remove their gallbladder. They mostly tend to opt for non-surgical treatment. But there is a major side effect to these non-surgical treatments. Gallstones tend to come back again and again, even after treatment. Unless and until the gallbladder is removed, the excess bile will keep forming in the gallbladder and create stones.

Sometimes, the non-surgical treatments do not remove the gallstones properly in one go either. Many of these treatments, like acid pills or shock waves, requires multiple therapy sessions. Now, this might not seem like a problem in the initial stage but later on, they become more complicated as they get bigger.

Another reason for removing your gallbladder is to avoid the possibility of its recurrence. A person can easily live without their gallbladder as the liver can produce enough bile necessary for the body.

If you opt for medication and not surgery, the only way to stop the recurrence of gallstones is life long medication, which is more expensive and might have side effects of their own.

Another side effect of the recurrence of gallstones is gallstone cancer. If these bile stones keep forming again and again and are not treated properly, it can cause chronic inflammation. This may lead to gallbladder cancer at a later stage.

Thus, most doctors recommend laparoscopic gallbladder surgery, as this does not have much long term side effects and can be easily performed. Just like any other laparoscopic surgery, only 3-4 small incisions are made and the gallbladder is removed. Unless and until you have some medical conditions, and the doctor does not recommend surgery, it is best to avoid non- surgical treatments and prefer surgical treatment.

So, if you have gallstones that are causing pain, it is best to undergo laparoscopic gallbladder surgery and lead a healthier life ahead.

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Health

Gallbladder Removal- Introduction And 4 Tips To Reduce Post- Surgery Complications

“Am I Going To Be Alright After Gallbladder Removal?” this is a common question that arises in most patients prior to the surgery.

Before finding your answer, let us give an insight on the organ- ‘Gall Bladder. Gall Bladder is a small organ, shaped like a pouch bag and located under our liver. It helps to store the bile, secreted from the liver. Gallbladder normally squeezes the enzyme into the small intestine for digesting the fat in food. However, let’s get to know why gallbladder can be removed (when required due to some illness), without any severe complication.

There are few organs in our system, without which, we can survive. The gallbladder is one of those. Removing the gallbladder would not affect our system drastically. Doctors often recommend to cut off the gallbladder completely through laparoscopic gallbladder surgery to ensure a permanent solution to gallstones reoccurrences in near future. There are some other gallbladder disorders like excess secretion of bile salt, cholesterol etc as well which are responsible for the decision of removing the organ.

However, its removal does not lead to any severe issues as even without the gallbladder, a sufficient amount of bile can be emitted by our liver and intestine. Hence, among the laparoscopic gallbladder surgery patients, the probability of suffering post-surgery complications is mostly nil. Hence we can say that you can expect to be alright after a laparoscopic gallbladder removal surgery.

However, post-surgery discomfort may arise in a few cases. Most of the complications are digestion related such as fat digestion, temporary diarrhoea, constipation etc. and are easily curable.

We are here to offer 4 diet and lifestyle tips that can help you after gallbladder surgery:

  1. Adoption of a low-fat diet: Normally, doctors prescribe to avoid high fat and calorie food after gallbladder surgery. Consult your doctor to plan your proper meal chart.
  2. Resume regular food habits slowly: Liquids, gelatin, and broths should be taken for the first couple of days. However, slowly and gradually you should add solid foods back into your dietary chart.
  3. Use a smaller portion of food intake: No matter what, try to lessen the quantity of food intake. Instead of going for jumbo meals, take small portions throughout the day.
  4. Keep a record of your diet: Be a little mindful while eating. Moreover, keep a track on your regular diet by maintaining a food journal or recording your intakes in an app.

Apart from these, you may also take help of physical exercises. However, for that, you need to ask your physician for suggestions.

Laparoscopic gallbladder surgery is a common practice. However, it can happen that one might experience some complication if they do not adhere to guidelines. Thus, it is always recommended to follow diet and lifestyle guidelines offered by the surgeons.

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Gallbladder Surgery Health

Will Removing Gallbladder For Gallstone Cause Any Harm In The Future?

The surgical removal of the gallbladder, known as cholecystectomy, has become a rather common procedure these days, all over the world. This procedure is mostly being carried out these days in the form of laparoscopic gallbladder surgery. Today we will discuss if removing this organ is absolutely necessary in such cases.

The gallbladder is a small, pear-shaped organ that sits in the right abdominal side, just over the liver. It plays a role in assisting digestion as it produces Bile, a digestive enzyme. Under normal circumstances, the gallbladder must never be removed, but it is often inevitable due to several illnesses. Gallstones are one such condition, which is resolved permanently for good, by removing the gallbladder itself. Apart from this, severe inflammation of the gallbladder and pancreas are often some of the underlying medical cause which might need to remove the gallbladder.

For those who do not have much idea about it. Gallstones are a hardened mass of bile and other enzymes that results in hard stone-like structures. The gallstones become a problem when they block the flow of bile and starts to cause immense pain. Several individuals consume oral medication and other therapies to cure it, which might even work for a while. However, it is not a reliable method of treatment and gallstone can recur in the future.

The surgery is the only permanent method of resolving gallstones. In this surgical procedure, the gallbladder itself is removed surgically. Though it is feared by many individuals, the removal of gallstone does not have any severe consequence on health, neither does it affect digestion significantly. It only might have a few short-term discomforts such as disruptive bowel habits and loose stools, that too resolves within a week or two.

The laparoscopic gallbladder surgery has even more benefits than the traditional open surgery. The laparoscopic surgeries are often outpatient procedures, which means the patient is allowed to leave the hospital the same day after the procedure. The recovery is extremely fast and enables most people to resume their usual activities in a matter of days.

Thus, in a nutshell, the removal of the gallbladder might look like a troublesome option, it is extremely safe and effective. And most importantly, it is crucial to execute when complications such as gallstone and severe inflammation of this organ occur. Rely only on the best hospitals to avail laparoscopic gallbladder surgery.Things you should know if your gallbladder is removed.