For many of us the gallbladder is an organ which should have never appeared in our bodies.  After all, the little runt just sits there high and mighty and waits for that piece of delicious chocolate mousse to arrive.  The mousse, by now partially digested, stimulates contractions and with those gallstones causes unbelievable pain.  Man cannot live on broccoli and tofu alone!

The reality is that the gallbladder does in fact help digest certain foods, yet its absence may cause nothing more than the occasional bloating.  Why do some unfortunates suffer from gallstones while others sail through life, munching down steaks, pie and all kinds of fatty foods without so much as a peep from that area of the gut? It turns out that in order to form gallstones chemical reactions need to occur and in some people either due to lack of certain enzymes, more rapid digestion or presence of chemical inhibitors gallstones don’t form. Yes, genetics once again plays a big role in our ailments.

But genetics is not the only player here. Obesity, consumption of fatty foods or being a female over forty, who has had several children are also known risk factors. Aside from changing your sex, which, for the record, I do not recommend for guys as a way of preventing gallstones, eating a healthy diet and keeping your weight down are two ways in which you might be able to hold off that gallbladder.

The symptoms are usually severe, unrelenting pain in the upper right portion of your abdomen just under the rib cage.  The pain often radiates to the back.  Fever and vomiting of green bile are often seen.  At times the gallstones may be lodged in a nearby duct and can back up into the pancreas, causing pancreatitis as well.  Not only can the gallbladder be inflamed, it can also cause abscesses as well as the occasional peritonitis.

Ultrasound is the best way to diagnose the problem.  At times, however the gallbladder may in fact have no stones but will nevertheless cause pain due to its lack of normal function. In those cases a gallbladder scan would be ordered, which could tell if the gallbladder is functioning normally. We stimulate to take a look at have a glimpse at this website for additional educational report.

Treatment involves pain control, antibiotics and often surgery to remove the organ once the condition has quieted down. More serious flare-ups require hospitalization.

At the end of the day. once the cursed organ is gone you can once again enjoy that chocolate mousse, albeit with more sensible portions.