In this video, Delfino Estevan Lorenzo, MD, General Surgeon at ARC South 1st Specialty and Pediatrics and ARC Southwest discusses gallbladder disease, going into detail on prevention, symptoms, and treatments.
Dr. Lorenzo describes how people often suffer through months or even years of symptoms of gallbladder disease before finally seeking medical help. He says, "If you've been experiencing upper abdominal pain, whether it's one episode or multiple episodes, I highly recommend that you reach out to your primary care (physician) to be evaluated and have the appropriate labs and imaging studies performed."
Learn more
Watch this video to learn more about gallbladder diseases, including more details about symptoms, as well as treatments. If you prefer to read what Dr. Lorenzo has to say, here is the transcript of the video:
My name is Estevan Lorenzo and I'm a general surgeon. So, the gallbladder is a small organ that sits underneath the liver, so underneath the right side of your rib cage, that's connected to a duct that empties out the liver connecting it to the intestine. The gallbladder doesn't make anything on its own; it is simply a storage container for the bile which is what's used to break down fats in the food that we eat.
Symptoms
Gallbladder disease typically manifests as upper abdominal pain, typically in the right upper quadrant know just beneath the right ribcage. It can also be associated with:
- bloating
- nausea and
- vomiting
particularly after eating fatty greasy meals.
Sometimes people will come in after months to years of having pain and not realizing what this was. They felt like it was just indigestion, and they would take Tums or Pepto or you know some over-the-counter medication until they finally presented to their primary care (physician)and underwent the appropriate test to determine this is gallbladder causing your issues.
Treatment
The treatment for gallbladder disease is strictly surgical. When having gallbladder surgery if it's simply gallstones or dysfunction surgery can be accomplished in outpatient fashion. Because we're able to do the surgery through small incisions you're able to get back up to doing normal activities within usually two to four weeks.
Prevention
To prevent gallbladder disease, it comes down to a healthy diet so, well-rounded low-fat diet. If you've been experiencing upper abdominal pain, whether it's one episode or multiple episodes, I highly recommend that you reach out to your primary care (physician) to be evaluated and have the appropriate labs and imaging studies performed. I'm more than happy to see you here in my clinic to discuss those results and your surgical options to treat it.
Make an appointment with Dr. Lorenzo today
Dr. Lorenzo is currently accepting new patients. To make an appointment, call ARC South 1st Specialty and Pediatrics at 512-443-1311 or ARC Southwest at 512-282-8967.