anyone who had gall bladder removed suffering from diarrhea after every big meal?? It's my husband's problem, doctor saying it's normal, gall bladder somehow controls it......doesn't seem right to me, so now he will have to go like this till the rest of his life?? Anybody else please???
2007-07-09 01:44:37 · 9 answers · asked by March 6 in Health ➔ Other - Health
It is a consequence of the removal of the gall bladder.
The gall bladder stores bile salts. These are chemicals our body uses to help us to absorb fats from the diet. The liver makes them and stores them in the gall bladder and then we eat a fatty meal and the gall bladder squirts them out into the intestines. We absorb the fats and it's all good.
Except sometimes it isn't. So for one reason or another crystals of bile salts form. These are gall stones. When we eat a fatty meal - sometimes these gall stones get squirted out into the duct for the bile and it causes terrible pain.
If we are afflicted by this we will initially be told not to have fatty foods, but if it's bad enough we get our gall bladder removed.
We can still make bile - just not store big quantities.
Now when we have a meal with fats in it - the liver makes some bile and we absorb SOME fats but not much. The rest of the fat passes through the small and large intestine and eventually comes out the other end in a form of greasy diarrhoea or "steatorrhoea"
Hmmm
Interestingly - a colleague has just pointed out to me that diarrhoea after gall bladder surgery is often NOT steatorrhoea, and may just be diarrhoea from upset of the intestines. It usually goes away.
2007-07-09 01:48:45 · answer #1 · answered by Orinoco 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I had my gall bladder removed and have no such problem. Additionally, my Doctor is great. He took the time and we went through the whole surgical thing. He mentioned things about possible problems and I don't thing chronic diarrhea was ever mentioned. I think this doctor my be playing a game of CYA. Check the web for an unbiased list of things that might occur after this surgery. Honestly, there is something here that smells like fish to me.
Good luck.
2007-07-09 01:53:49 · answer #2 · answered by gimpalomg 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The only clear side effect of removal of the gallbladder is diarrhea. This occurs in about 10% of patients. The diarrhea occurs because of the change in the way bile is delivered to the intestine once the gallbladder has been removed. Bile and the way it is delivered to the intestine appears to control the speed with which food passes through the intestine. Removing the gallbladder speeds up the passage of food and thereby may cause the diarrhea. There may be other reasons why the change in delivery of bile causes diarrhea as well.
Have him speak to his dr. about taking immodium and he should limit foods that would provoke diaherrea anyways, spicy food, fatty food, alcohol.....
2007-07-09 02:01:30 · answer #3 · answered by miss_sass_e_cat 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
My gallbladder was removed a year and a half ago. Diarhea is indeed a problem in the beginning.
Please tell your husband to avoid fatty food for the time being. His stool should go back to normal after a few days and then he can start experimenting what is the problem for him. After a while he will know what to eat and what not. He should not give up the hard to digest foods alltogether but keep trying them once in a while. I personally do not have any foods that give me problems anymore.
2007-07-09 05:05:12 · answer #4 · answered by Chaim B 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Oh definitely. Nearly everybody I know has trouble with diarrhea after having their gall-bladders removed.
It's wise to avoid fatty foods because the bile (which is produced by the gall bladder) is used in processing these fats . . . without the gall bladder, the body isn't as able to process them, so . . . out they come.
2007-07-09 01:52:25 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yep. I had my gallbladder removed a few years ago and that's the side effect. It sucks. I hate it. I have to avoid greasy foods, hash browns or any real fatty foods. If I feel my stomach gurgling after eating something I really shouldn't have. I immediately take Immodium AD and that helps. Make sure you consult a doctor if it's safe for you. It's a lifetime new "old" thing.
2007-07-09 01:50:37 · answer #6 · answered by Fartbuster 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I can confirm this is true. I had my gallbladder out two years ago and I do have this problem, more so after eating meat, however it is not as bad now as it was the first year after the surgery. I was also told this is normal, even though they did a few tests to make sure there was nothing wrong.
2007-07-09 01:49:21 · answer #7 · answered by ellen d 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
my hubby had gallbladder removal surgery a few years ago and has never had the problem a family member swore hed have and ive had several other family members have the same surgery and they never had that problem. i think the original family members problem was they probably loaded up on laxitives because normally they think if they dont poop every day they will get ill
2007-07-09 09:55:45 · answer #8 · answered by luckyduck2006 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Have him try taking 2 fiber tablets every day- it may help
2007-07-09 02:59:56 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋