What Are the Signs of Needing Gallbladder Surgery?

Your body is extraordinary. Your heart never stops pumping, your brain never stops firing, and your digestive system never stops breaking down nutrients to fuel your body and keep your cells in tip-top shape. You also have some organs you can live without like your appendix, spleen, and gallbladder.

Take your gallbladder. It stores the bile your liver produces, which breaks down the fat you consume. When working properly, this organ should give you no problems. However, if gallbladder issues arise, you can be left with serious pain and a host of other tough symptoms.

If gallbladder issues aren’t addressed, you can even be at risk for infection, gallbladder inflammation, pancreatitis, and life-threatening gallbladder rupture.

As an accomplished and seasoned general surgeon, Dr. Luis Quinones at Q&S Surgical in Decatur and Lithonia, Georgia, has performed many gallbladder surgeries and is invested in educating our patients about signs — some subtle and others more obvious — that indicate surgery may be necessary. 

You can trust Dr. Quinones to recommend the best treatment for you, no matter what gallbladder symptoms you’re experiencing.

The role of your gallbladder

Your liver releases bile into your duodenum — the first portion of your small intestine. Then the bile assists your body in both breaking down and absorbing fats from what you eat. 

Bile is a thick yellow, brown, or olive green liquid. Your body can produce anywhere from 27-32 ounces of bile per day, but your gallbladder stores only 1-2.7 ounces at any given time. The bile first travels through your bile duct before reaching your gallbladder, which is located on the right side of your abdomen, under your liver. 

Why you might need gallbladder surgery

At Q&S Surgical, we see several common problems that usually require gallbladder removal. 

1. Gallstones

By far the most common issue that necessitates gallbladder removal is gallstones — hardened digestive fluid deposits that develop in your gallbladder. 

They might sound innocuous, but they can cause sudden, severe pain in your abdomen and under your breastbone as well as other uncomfortable symptoms, including nausea, vomiting, abdominal bloating, and a yellowing of your skin called jaundice. You may also experience fever, chills, and pain between your shoulder blades. 

Gallbladder pain isn’t something you can power through. It’s intense and often makes it impossible to get comfortable. Gallbladder attacks are also unpredictable in that they can last minutes or hours. 

2. Biliary dyskinesia

This problem impedes your gallbladder’s ability to do its job — moving bile into your bile ducts. The result? Bile backs up and moves into your gallbladder. As a result, your gallbladder can become swollen. This, in turn, causes upper abdominal pain, nausea, and even infection. 

3. Acute cholecystitis

This is gallbladder inflammation commonly caused by gallstones and backed-up bile. However, cholecystitis can also be linked to tumors, infections, and other bile duct issues. 

If your gallbladder isn’t removed, your condition can escalate to potentially lethal proportions and even lead to a gallbladder rupture. 

4. Gallbladder cancer

Gallbladder cancer develops when cells grow abnormally in your gallbladder. Unfortunately, it’s often caught in its later stages since there aren’t any noticeable symptoms. But if gallbladder cancer is detected early, surgery to remove your gallbladder can be lifesaving. Fortunately, this type of cancer is rare.

Gallbladder removal surgery can solve each of these problems. 

Your gallbladder surgery has been scheduled — now what?

If Dr. Quinones recommends gallbladder surgery, he may opt for open surgery, which requires him to make a sizable incision to access your gallbladder and remove it. Invasive surgery like this means a stay in the hospital and general anesthesia.

You may be a candidate for minimally invasive gallbladder surgery, however. This procedure requires that Dr. Quinones make only a few very small incisions. He uses specially designed tools that fit through a thin tube inserted into the incisions.

After your procedure, you’ll take it easy for a few weeks. You may also need to alter your diet so your body can simply process fat with more ease. 

Minimally invasive procedures are associated with faster recovery and reduced bleeding, scarring, and post-surgical infection. 

We’ll soon also be able to perform da VinciⓇ robotic-assisted gallbladder surgery, allowing Dr. Quinones to work with much greater precision. He has special expertise in performing this laparoscopic surgery. 

To learn more about gallbladder surgery, schedule an appointment with Dr. Quinones today. You can call our office or click online to book.