Gallbladder Disease Symptoms and Treatment

The gallbladder can stop working properly if there are some diseases or other complications which affects its work. This often results in problematic bile release which further causes digestive problems.

In most cases gallbladder problems start with the formation of gallbladder stones and gallbladder inflammation. The gallbladder stones are made of bile salts, cholesterol and other elements found in the bile. The size of these stones can vary, but in most cases larger gallbladder stones cause blockage of the bile channel and the flow of bile is affected. This often results in gallbladder disease or the so called gallbladder attack.

Gallbladder Disease Symptoms

Gallbladder problems and digestive problems are closely connected. This is obvious, since the most common symptoms of gallbladder disease are: - severe abdominal pain
- vomiting and nausea
- bloating and burping
- gasses
- diarrhea

The severe stomach pain we have mentioned above generally appears in the upper side of the stomach, on the right, just under the ribs. In some cases, this pain can move towards the back and between the shoulder blades. The duration of this pain can also vary from 20 minutes to several hours, even days.

Another common symptom of gallbladder disease is vomiting. This symptom mustn’t be ignored and in case you or the one you know has this symptoms, it is recommended to see a doctor immediately. The other symptoms mentioned earlier usually occur after the patient has a heavy meal and they don’t have to be directly connected with gallbladder disease, so it is better to check this as soon as possible.

Gallbladder Disease Treatment

There are many factors which can influence the treatment. Some of them are gender, age, overall health condition and so on. In most cases, when the symptoms are not severe, the treatment starts with medications which either prevent the formation of gallbladder stones or dissolve them if there are any. However, if the symptoms get worse, it is important to include antibiotics in the treatment. On the other hand, of nothing helps, then it is necessary to have a gallbladder surgery, and even have the gallbladder removed.

Additionally, your doctor will propose to make some changes in your diet, which mainly consists of avoiding fatty and greasy foods, sweets and similar. Luckily there are lists of foods you can and can’t consume, so having such a diet is rather easy. Maybe it will take some time for you to get used to it, but it is better to control what you eat than to experience the pain of a gallbladder attack.