jeudi 24 mai 2018

Concepts On Gallbladder Surgery Queens NY Patients May Wish To Know

By Matthew Powell


The gall bladder is small organ in your body, just adjacent to the liver, whose function is to store a special juice referred to as bile produced by the liver. Bile is released whenever there is fat to be digested in the gut. The juices reach the intestines through channels that connect the liver, gall bladder, pancreas and bowel. In some instances, these ducts can get blocked resulting in a diseased sac that may require surgery. These are some of the basic principles of gallbladder surgery Queens NY patients may be interested in.

The presence of gallstones, also medically referred to as cholelithiasis, is one of the diseases affecting the gall bladder that may require removal of the organ for cure. In this condition, crystallized molecules composed of different elements form within the bladder, interfering with its normal function. There are two main types of stones, cholesterol stones and pigment stones of which over fifty percent are cholesterol in form. A person is at a greater risk of having the stones if they have had a similar episode in the past, if they are obese, chronically dehydrated, if they are female and if older than forty years of age.

Gallstones present as abdominal pain in the region where the bladder is located, that is the right upper quadrant of the abdomen. The pain is usually intermittent and may be associated with food intake. It usually is an intense pain that may last several hours. This happens when a stone is released from the gallbladder and gets lodged into one of the biliary ducts (transport channels). The stone travels back and forth due to peristaltic waves within the ducts hence the intermittency of the pain. The itensity of discomfort is directly proportional to the size and number of stones.

The patient may also have a distended abdomen. Additional signs and symptoms include yellowness of the skin and mucous membranes, fever, nausea, vomiting and consequent dehydration. The initial management of these patients is to provide supportive therapy as surgery is planned. This entails restoring hydration status though administration of intravenous fluids, analgesic support and drugs to reduce the inflammation.

While gallstones are manageable, they may result in recurrence and fatal complications if misdiagnosed or if detected late. Ongoing inflammation can cause organ perforation, resulting in spillage of bile into the surrounding abdominal cavity. This is usually an emergency as can result in permanent damage of key organs in the abdomen.

The mainstay of treatment for gallstones is gall bladder removal, otherwise known as cholecystectomy. Preoperatively, certain blood tests including liver function test should be performed to ensure the patient is fit for surgery. Also, an abdominal ultrasound needs to be done to confirm the diagnosis and to define the region of disease. Surgery is usually done under general anaesthesia.

The operation can either be laparoscopic or open depending on the resources available. Laparoscopy is, however, more preferred because it carries less risk given the fact that only small incisions are made, limited to the target area. Consequently, cosmetic results are better than if one goes for open surgery.

In conclusion, gall bladder surgery is indicated for eighty percent of patients with gallstones. This is because most patients present when they can no longer bear the pain or when medications have failed. Surgery is the preferred form of treatment since it eliminates chances of recurrence if done properly.




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