My aunt has gall stones and needs her gall blatter removed but i dont trust the doctors?

Question

she has gall stones and the docters where using her as an example because they had students in the room and they say its normal for women her age but none of our family has ever had gall stones before should i trust her

Answer 1

Gall stones are much more common than you may think. It's not a terrbile surgery but if she decides nott o have it done it CAN effect her for the rest of her life. IT causes a LOT of discomfort and some pain. Gall stones are easy to fix and afterwards she should feel 100% better.

Answer 2

Go get a second opinion from another doctor. Most insurance companies welcome second or even third opinions from other doctors because it saves them money from paying on unnecessary procedures. Also, find a doctor that you trust - the doctor that gives you the second opinion may have the same diagnosis, but you may feel more comfortable with him/her. No reason why you shouldn't start going to see this other doctor rather than your primary. You don't need your gall bladder to live and gall stones are just plain painful to live with. Technology has improved surgery techniques to have this treated and recovery time is much less than what it used to be.

From what I've read in your question - you were in a teaching environment. A doctor would not put a patient into this situation unless the patient has agreed to disclose their medical information (HIPPA). It looks like she was not given the correct counsel about what to expect to be in the company of medical students and sometimes it's very disturbing to a patient to have her condition discussed before a bunch of aspiring medical students who are strangers. It would be that your aunt agreed to be used as an example for reduced medical cost fee (I'm just guessing at this.)

It could be that gall stones is a hereditary thing - but there are lots of firsts in family medical histories where there is no record of anyone of having a particular disease, then suddenly someone has something (like having breast cancer where there is no previous family history.)

So my advice is to get a second or third opinion and find a doctor that won't put your aunt on display as a teaching example. Also, find a doctor that you can confide and trust in.

Answer 3

Gall stones is not genetic (hereditary), so no family history is irrelevant. Gallstones are easily diagnosed under ultrasound. There shouldn't be any mistaking them. They can measure the size of the stone down to the millimeter. Removing the gall bladder will elevate the pain, and help the liver function because the stone won't be blocking the common hepatic duct. Once the gall bladder is removed, eating food with a lot of fat can cause some digestive problems, because there might not be enough bile stored to process the fat. A small inconvenience compared to the problems it can cause.

Not to say don't get a second opinion. Always an option.

Answer 4

Medical students have to learn SOMEHOW; and gall stones in women over 40 are quite common. If your aunt was a good teaching case, then that's why the students were there. While heredity does play a role in illnesses, there are plenty of other factors such as environment and diet, that may cause the development of gallstones.

These days, gall bladder surgery is usually done laproscopically, and the recovery time is VERY much reduced from 25 years ago. I'm sure your aunt will be fine.

Answer 5

Unless there are other health problems, your Aunt should be fine. Teaching hospitals are considered some of the best in the world, and that is WHY we train our physicians and nurses there.
Heredity is part, but not all of the equation. Lifestyle, age, and diet, all contribute to gall stones. They are most common in people of Northern Euro. decent. (Scandinavia, Ireland, and the U.K.- fair skinned, light hair etc)
If your Aunt is having the laproscopic procedure, she will be out of the hospital in one day, and fully recovered in a week to 10 days. If her gall bladder is in the "acute" stages of disease, the full surgical procedure is indicated and the recovery could be as long as 6 weeks. Both are common proven procedures, and complications are rare. Don't worry so much. Rather than watch your Aunt in horrible pain, encourage her to have the surgery. There is no other treatment option for acute gallbladder disease, other than having it removed.

Answer 6

Yes, please do, because Gall bladder attacks are the most painful thing in the world. I'd rather give birth to sextuplets with no medication than have a gall bladder attack. I kid you not. The hospital is probably a teaching hospital, but they do not let the newbie students operate. They have to be like 3rd year residents before they get this priviledge and even then they have real docs overseeing the surgery. Let your aunt have some peace of mind, she needs the surgery.

Answer 7

A second opinion can never hurt. My Mom had gall stones at a pretty young age, but if you do not trust them seek another opinion.

Answer 8

If your aunt is in a teaching hospital (if it's a University Medical center, it's almost a guarantee it's a teaching hospital, but there's a lot of teaching hospitals) then it's normal to have students in the room.

If your aunt is sick and in pain, you don't have to trust the diagnosis - she does. However, as a patient, it's completely her right to have a second opinion before any kind of surgery is done. (Unless her life is in danger - such as her gallbladder is going to burst - then you have the surgery first and worry about it later!) It's possible to live without one, you just have to be more aware of what you're eating for the fat content, it might bother you.

It's entirely possible that she has gallstones without a family history - I know four people in my immediate circle (including my mom) who had gallstones without a family history.

Answer 9

If you are concerned go see another doctor....I dont think they would lie just becuase there were students there