It is currently 28 Mar 2024, 17:37

Gallstones

Hang up your Chisels and Plane blades and take a load off with a recently turned goblet of your favourite poison, in the lounge of our Gentlemen's (and ladies) Club.

Gallstones

Postby Jimmy Mack » 23 Feb 2017, 12:03

I have two at approximately 1cm...They were an incidental finding Jan 2016 and have probably been there for some time.

I've recently been offered a Laparoscopic (keyhole) Cholecystectomy (gallbladder removal) by the NHS

At present I don't have much of an issue (touch wood ;) )...perhaps a very, minor slight ache in the gallbladder region from time-to-time...but not the labour style pain 'gallbladder attacks' I've read about. TBH had I not had the incidental finding I would be blissfully unaware.

So I'm umm'ing and err'ing about having it out...If I leave it in and should a stone get trapped in the bile duct I could be looking at Acute Pancratitus or Cholecystitis...both quite serious open surgery fixes and potentially life threatening :o

Like you do ...I turned to my friend Google, now I know I should stick to the reputable sites with clinical evidence (the NHS for example), however you're only a few clicks away form death and it wasn't long before I was reading lots of tales regarding bad PO (post op) experiences where folk have had to really change their diets (permanently) to a very strict (bland) diet with some quite simple foods causing sickness and toilet issues and having half a beer or glass of wine leads to sickness.

I know these are likely to be a the minority, as it's very safe and common procedure and success stories don't often get posted on forums- where patients just crack on with life. But it does make me wonder if I will be one. :eusa-think:

My instinct tells me to defer as I have no immediate issues (pain), why introduce the possibilities of dietary and toilet problems or worse case scenario ...bile duct injury in surgery? The surgeon said even though duct injury is a low risk (1 in 300), if it happens , it'll take 10 years off me! Woah! (my jaw hit the floor) But then the problems with leaving it in are a bit of a gamble too.

'...a rock and hard place' comes to mind.


So I thought as there's been a bit of chat on gastro health I was wondering if any of you chaps had any thoughts or experiences on the topic...living with gallstones/ having the gallbladder out and PO experience?

Jim
User avatar
Jimmy Mack
Old Oak
 
Posts: 1093
Joined: 21 Mar 2016, 19:04
Location: Leeds, West Yorkshire
Name:

Re: Gallstones

Postby Woodster » 23 Feb 2017, 14:40

I experienced excruciating pain from my gall bladder and ended up in A&E four times. The only thing to take the pain away was intravenous morphine. Luckily I had private health cover through work and had a well regarded surgeon remove it for me via keyhole surgery in a private hospital. The surgeon told me that as well as having gall stones the gall bladder itself was infected. The operation went well and I haven't had any issues since. This was all done about three and a half years ago.
User avatar
Woodster
Old Oak
 
Posts: 2558
Joined: 26 Jan 2017, 13:17
Location: Dorset
Name:

Re: Gallstones

Postby Jimmy Mack » 23 Feb 2017, 17:44

Woodster wrote:I experienced excruciating pain from my gall bladder and ended up in A&E four times. The only thing to take the pain away was intravenous morphine. Luckily I had private health cover through work and had a well regarded surgeon remove it for me via keyhole surgery in a private hospital. The surgeon told me that as well as having gall stones the gall bladder itself was infected. The operation went well and I haven't had any issues since. This was all done about three and a half years ago.

Thanks for your reply, sounds like it was out just in the time!

Have you had to change your diet in anyway...anything you can't eat or drink that you could before?

Jim

Sent from my HTC 0P6B900 using Tapatalk
User avatar
Jimmy Mack
Old Oak
 
Posts: 1093
Joined: 21 Mar 2016, 19:04
Location: Leeds, West Yorkshire
Name:

Re: Gallstones

Postby Woodster » 23 Feb 2017, 18:25

I don't recall that diet was even discussed at the time. I've certainly not modified my intake at all, I still enjoy a curry with a couple of bottles of Cobra! Best speak to the experts though.
User avatar
Woodster
Old Oak
 
Posts: 2558
Joined: 26 Jan 2017, 13:17
Location: Dorset
Name:

Re: Gallstones

Postby Jimmy Mack » 29 Mar 2017, 07:37

Had the galbladder out yesterday, was suppose to be a day case, but it was a tricky, sticky bugger to remove and the surgeon nicked an artery...I heard it very nearly went from keyhole to open surgery. Got a good beating from the surgeon. It'll be steady away for a few weeks.

My view is nowhere near as cool as rod's

Image

Sent from my HTC 0P6B900 using Tapatalk
User avatar
Jimmy Mack
Old Oak
 
Posts: 1093
Joined: 21 Mar 2016, 19:04
Location: Leeds, West Yorkshire
Name:

Re: Gallstones

Postby Phil » 29 Mar 2017, 07:46

Speedy recovery.
We don't stop woodworking because we grow old, we grow old because we stop woodworking!

https://www.instagram.com/phil_pretoria/
User avatar
Phil
Old Oak
 
Posts: 3499
Joined: 23 Jul 2014, 05:11
Location: Southern Africa 0054
Name: Phil

Re: Gallstones

Postby TrimTheKing » 29 Mar 2017, 08:12

Ouch, all the best pal.

Cheers
Mark


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
Cheers
Mark
TrimTheKing
Site Admin
 
Posts: 7566
Joined: 16 Jun 2014, 13:27
Location: Grappenhall, Cheshire
Name: Mark

Re: Gallstones

Postby Malc2098 » 29 Mar 2017, 09:27

:text-+1:

And do what they tell you!
Malcolm
User avatar
Malc2098
Sequoia
 
Posts: 7208
Joined: 03 Jul 2016, 11:10
Location: Tiverton
Name: Malcolm

Re: Gallstones

Postby Andyp » 29 Mar 2017, 09:47

Incredible how many bits you can live without. Hope all goes well with the recovery.
I do not think therefore I do not am.

cheers
Andy
User avatar
Andyp
Petrified Pine
 
Posts: 11717
Joined: 22 Jul 2014, 07:05
Location: 14860 Normandy, France
Name: Andy

Re: Gallstones

Postby Jimmy Mack » 29 Mar 2017, 10:08

Cheers chaps...wow... just had the drain removed, all 200mm of pipe pulled out...maybe 8mm dia ...that was fun. Hopefully home today, then back on the tools in the morning

I do have a Kandinsky to look out while I bounce about on pain relief.

Image

Sent from my HTC 0P6B900 using Tapatalk
User avatar
Jimmy Mack
Old Oak
 
Posts: 1093
Joined: 21 Mar 2016, 19:04
Location: Leeds, West Yorkshire
Name:

Re: Gallstones

Postby Rod » 29 Mar 2017, 10:13

All the best for a speedy recovery.

Rod
User avatar
Rod
Old Oak
 
Posts: 4471
Joined: 21 Jul 2014, 21:34
Location: Winchester, Hampshire
Name:

Re: Gallstones

Postby RogerS » 29 Mar 2017, 19:22

All the best for a speedy recovery. Sounds like you had a narrow escape missing out on the open surgery.

How did they find them in the first place? X-ray of some other part of the body?

And curious to know what made you decide to opt for the op.
If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door.
User avatar
RogerS
Petrified Pine
 
Posts: 13290
Joined: 21 Jul 2014, 21:07
Location: Nearly finished. OK OK...call me Pinocchio.
Name:

Re: Gallstones

Postby Dan0741 » 29 Mar 2017, 19:31

Hope all goes well matey - and follow advice re the rest period required. :D
...time is precious; waste it wisely...
Dan0741
Sapling
 
Posts: 392
Joined: 09 Aug 2015, 19:38
Location: nn6
Name: Dan

Re: Gallstones

Postby Woodster » 29 Mar 2017, 20:18

Get well soon.
User avatar
Woodster
Old Oak
 
Posts: 2558
Joined: 26 Jan 2017, 13:17
Location: Dorset
Name:

Re: Gallstones

Postby Jimmy Mack » 29 Mar 2017, 20:22

RogerS wrote:All the best for a speedy recovery. Sounds like you had a narrow escape missing out on the open surgery.

How did they find them in the first place? X-ray of some other part of the body?

And curious to know what made you decide to opt for the op.

Thanks Roger, I think I did have a narrow escape, the surgeon did have a good rummage, so feeling pretty beat upl...I've learnt not much seems to touch abdominal pain!

My main reasons for choosing removal were the potential risks related to the stones are life threatening (see OP).
I'd been having quiet a lot of dull aches in the region over the past couple of years.

Turns out that the OP visual inspection proved the gallbladder was having frequent (quiet) inflammations and the omentum apron which surrounds the organs and moves about to protect regions (like a little wall, this is my interpretation of what the surgeon said BTW) was all stuck to a sticky, sick galbladder. Removal was a smart (lucky) choice. If I'd had a CAT scan this would of come up, but for some reason I didn't. I only had the ultrasound. I also had some raised/ spiking liver emzyme ALTs results last year...which now points to a misbehaving GB dumping gunk into the liver. These early ALT results prompted an ultrasound on the liver and the galstones were an incidental finding.

In conclusion it was a tough decision to have it out, I read and talked to specialists a lot... but the OP from having it out has clearly proved 'better out than in' for me!

I now have to tentively relearn my diet, hopefully I'm like the majority and can 'return to a normal diet'. Whatever that is.


Jim

Sent from my HTC 0P6B900 using Tapatalk
User avatar
Jimmy Mack
Old Oak
 
Posts: 1093
Joined: 21 Mar 2016, 19:04
Location: Leeds, West Yorkshire
Name:

Re: Gallstones

Postby Jimmy Mack » 29 Mar 2017, 20:25

Thanks for the kind support chaps...get posting projects...I need your entertainment

Sent from my HTC 0P6B900 using Tapatalk
User avatar
Jimmy Mack
Old Oak
 
Posts: 1093
Joined: 21 Mar 2016, 19:04
Location: Leeds, West Yorkshire
Name:


Return to The Woodmangler's Retreat

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Andyp and 17 guests