Ongoing pain in right abdomen has me worried (Gallstones or something else?)

[ThirstyMMM]

Hi there!

Was looking for some advice, as recently I have had an ongoing pain, which is more a feeling of discomfort and dull ache in a localized area in my mid/lower right abdomen (just below my rib cage, and next to my naval).

Going back just before Xmas, I had an ongoing issue with bloating and pain across a number of days that caused me to see a GP. I couldn't get in with my usual doctor, so stupidly went to a walk-in clinic thinking they could shed some light on what the issue was. Within 10 seconds of my mentioning my symptoms (felt bloated, with radiating pains from left to right across my lower stomach), the doctor put a stethoscope to my stomach and somehow came up with the call that I was suffering from an infection in my large intestine, prescribed me pills and pretty much pushed me out the door. I left entirely not convinced of his accuracy, and booked a follow up with my local GP - who ordered a CBC (complete blood count), as well as tests for enzymes, sugar levels etc.

From this it was found I was suffering from Pancreatitis, with my enzyme levels 3x the normal amount. They urgently got me to do a follow up blood test the very next day, but strangely my levels were back to normal.

For a week or so, my discomfort and pain that I was experiencing had subsided, which made sense because my pancreas had settled down. However, since then the niggling pain has returned and settled in my mid/lower right abdomen in a specific spot just above my navel and under my ribs. I have had a follow up CBC and tests for pancreas enzymes and all came back as normal.

Doing some basic research, and from what the docs have recently told me; my gallbladder could be an issue, but the thing is there are times when the pain doesn't come when I'm eating or have eaten, and it has popped up some mornings shortly after waking up when I have yet to eat breakfast. This makes me think the gallbladder may not be the issue and I am becoming increasingly worried it is something else.

On top of this, I have noticed I have been feeling rather 'tight' in the chest, and the most strange thing is when I have recently played football and copped a bump, the area in my abdomen that presents with the localized pain/discomfort shocks me with a sharp pain.

At last check with my doctor when they did the follow up CBC and enzyme tests that came back normal, they recommend I try and persist with a clean diet and see if it helps clear up the issue. But at present, it has done very little.

My question is; if my gallbladder was the issue (gallstones), would this show up in a blood test?

Recently I have been suffering from Health Anxiety (getting help for it now), and I dropped 3kgs or thereabouts over the course of a month for an entirely separate issue relating to twitches that had me worried about something neurological. I understand stress/anxiety can cause weight loss, but now it has me wondering if it is related to this current issue - however my weight has stayed the same ever since, and thankfully hasn't dropped any further, which gives me hope.

I am booked in for a chat to my GP tomorrow, where I will ask for an ultrasound to help find what the issue is (and help put my mind at ease). But I am currently super worried it is another major issue like Lymphoma or something else, and having health anxiety certainly isn't helping. :weep:

Thank you for any advice anyone can give.

[PanickyGuy]

My question is; if my gallbladder was the issue (gallstones), would this show up in a blood test?


Usually they do a scan with a barium swallow and that's how they find gallstones. That's how my gallstones were found. I don't think they can tell much from blood tests concerning that.

[ThirstyMMM]

Usually they do a scan with a barium swallow and that's how they find gallstones. That's how my gallstones were found. I don't think they can tell much from blood tests concerning that.

Oh, I'd never heard of that scan.

My GP mentioned an ultrasound or CT would be the next step, but am not overly a fan of CT with contrast given it involves small levels of radiation, so think I will opt for an ultrasound if possible.

What symptoms did you have with your gallbladder, was it anything similar to what I described? Feels like someone is poking me under the ribs with their finger, applying pressure.

[PanickyGuy]

Yeah you need to really discuss with your doctor about how reliable ultrasounds are at detecting gallstones. I don't know if it's to do with the type of equipment they use or the person operating the equipment, but I had that done before they found the stones with the scan and they didn't see any stones with the ultrasound. And I asked my doctor why that was, but he had no idea.

Actually, the reason they found the gallstones was by coincident. Because I was complaining about dull aches and discomfort in my lower left abdomen near my groin area, and my doctor thought I might of had a hernia that area. But that wasn't the case and it was really do to weak muscles and just bad constipation from antacid meds, which I figured out later on when I stop eating the damn things.

Getting to your question, I still have my gallstones and I do on very rare occasions get a similar dull ache (we're talking once in a blue moon) like you described in the same areas, but on the other hand, in my case I've had that finger pressure you're talking about all over and it's usually just gas for me. But that might be do to my diet, because I also have GERD and I have to watch what I eat.

Edit to add: I was wrong about the blood test and it depends on what kind of blood test you get. But they do a certain kind of blood test that is called a Liver Function Test (LFT), which checks the enzyme levels in the liver and will show whether the gallbladder is inflamed by gallstones. BTW, that scan I was talking about was the HIDA scan. I couldn't remember the name of it before because I had it done about three years ago.

[Lauz]

An ultrasound will let you know if it is gallstones, a ct won’t. My husband went through this the other month due to intense pain in his flank and shoulder, he thought it was kidney stones but nothing was on the ct.
He actually ended up having Pleurisy which is fluid on the lungs! He is ok now.

Get an ultrasound they will check your gallbladder, kidneys and liver ... hope you feel better soon.

[ThirstyMMM]

Yeah you need to really discuss with your doctor about how reliable ultrasounds are at detecting gallstones. I don't know if it's to do with the type of equipment they use or the person operating the equipment, but I had that done before they found the stones with the scan and they didn't see any stones with the ultrasound. And I asked my doctor why that was, but he had no idea.

Actually, the reason they found the gallstones was by coincident. Because I was complaining about dull aches and discomfort in my lower left abdomen near my groin area, and my doctor thought I might of had a hernia that area. But that wasn't the case and it was really do to weak muscles and just bad constipation from antacid meds, which I figured out later on when I stop eating the damn things.

Getting to your question, I still have my gallstones and I do on very rare occasions get a similar dull ache (we're talking once in a blue moon) like you described in the same areas, but on the other hand, in my case I've had that finger pressure you're talking about all over and it's usually just gas for me. But that might be do to my diet, because I also have GERD and I have to watch what I eat.

Edit to add: I was wrong about the blood test and it depends on what kind of blood test you get. But they do a certain kind of blood test that is called a Liver Function Test (LFT), which checks the enzyme levels in the liver and will show whether the gallbladder is inflamed by gallstones. BTW, that scan I was talking about was the HIDA scan. I couldn't remember the name of it before because I had it done about three years ago.

My doctor was vigalent about giving me a CT scan, aligning with my own concerns over the fact they use radiation for their scans (albeit in a tiny dose). I've never been a fan of it, so we both agreed on an ultrasound.

Yep, I had a LFT also, but all levels were normal. My doctor said gallstones could still be an issue due to the fact I have had pancreatitis (the two issues are linked), and that my Dad has had his gallbladder removed. She said from here only a scan would reveal them, otherwise a gastrointestinal doctor (I think that's what she said) would need to investigate further.

Thanks for the insight - I hope you're doing well now! I've heard a lot of people actually have gallstones, but they are minimal or in such small size they don't cause any issues or end up passing as part of digestion if small enough.

[ThirstyMMM]

An ultrasound will let you know if it is gallstones, a ct won’t. My husband went through this the other month due to intense pain in his flank and shoulder, he thought it was kidney stones but nothing was on the ct.
He actually ended up having Pleurisy which is fluid on the lungs! He is ok now.

Get an ultrasound they will check your gallbladder, kidneys and liver ... hope you feel better soon.

Thanks for the response and kind words, Lauz. It feels like the pains aren't as frequent as they once were, so hopefully that is a sign it's getting better. :hugs:

I now have a referral for an ultrasound, so will book in and hopefully get it sorted. Thanks! :)

[PanickyGuy]

My doctor was vigalent about giving me a CT scan, aligning with my own concerns over the fact they use radiation for their scans (albeit in a tiny dose). I've never been a fan of it, so we both agreed on an ultrasound.

I understand and your doctors over there probably have better ultrasound equipment. So if gallstones are there, they'll probably find them. My deal in my case was, for some strange reason they just didn't find them with the ultrasound equipment they used on me. And to this day, I still don't know what happened. Equipment failure, who knows? The problem is, I found out that I wasn't the only one that had that problem happen here in the U.S. So ever since then, I never trusted them to be accurate. And I understand your concerns over radiation. I've never been concerned about it, but that's just me and the way I think.


Yep, I had a LFT also, but all levels were normal. My doctor said gallstones could still be an issue due to the fact I have had pancreatitis (the two issues are linked), and that my Dad has had his gallbladder removed. She said from here only a scan would reveal them, otherwise a gastrointestinal doctor (I think that's what she said) would need to investigate further.

Yeah I think I recall my doctor having a LFT done on me at one point with my complaints, but I can't remember if he ever mentioned the results or not, probably didn't because he got back good results, so he just decided to do the HIDA scan to be sure, when I kept coming back with complaints and boom - they found them.


Thanks for the insight - I hope you're doing well now! I've heard a lot of people actually have gallstones, but they are minimal or in such small size they don't cause any issues or end up passing as part of digestion if small enough.

Your welcome and I still got em' as far as I know and so far so good. You know, I asked my doc how long they had been there and he said a loooooong time, which is why I asked him about the ultrasound not finding them, anyway, I've always been suspicious since he told me that, and those gallstones aren't the culprit he always thinks is giving me the stomach issues. Because I never had those stomach issues before I got GAD and panic disorder and I've never had any of the major painful symptoms most people describe with a gallbladder attack. So it's been about three years since they found the damn things and I've not worry about it since then.

Anyway man, I hope you get it all straighten out and you fell much better. Here's to your health *raise glass* cheers!

[ThirstyMMM]

Your welcome and I still got em' as far as I know and so far so good. You know, I asked my doc how long they had been there and he said a loooooong time, which is why I asked him about the ultrasound not finding them, anyway, I've always been suspicious since he told me that, and those gallstones aren't the culprit he always thinks is giving me the stomach issues. Because I never had those stomach issues before I got GAD and panic disorder and I've never had any of the major painful symptoms most people describe with a gallbladder attack. So it's been about three years since they found the damn things and I've not worry about it since then.

Anyway man, I hope you get it all straighten out and you fell much better. Here's to your health *raise glass* cheers!

Thanks mate, much appreciated.

I had my ultrasound yesterday and my local doctor has just called me today to book in an appointment to see her tomorrow to go over my results. I'm praying to god it's nothing bad, as now I'm freaking out a little that there is something wrong given she's called me back so soon to go over results. I'm quietly hoping she is just calling me to put my mind at ease as she knows I've been suffering from terrible health anxiety (especially in recent weeks). :weep:

The pleasing thing is my pains/discomfort have actually subsided over the past week - particularly when eating as well, which makes me think that maybe it isn't gallstone related (or that if I did have a stone it has passed). Having said that, he did seem to take a fair few scan/photos of that area where my gallbladder is located (under my lower right ribcage). The ultrasound tech was pretty thorough, and didn't seem to worried about my appendix either when scanning that area, so I'd say that isn't an issue.

[Careful1]

I just wanted to say that gallbladder pain does not occur during the eating process, it occurs during digestion which can take place hours later. It took a very long time to figure out my pain was being caused by my gallbladder because it happened so many hours after eating that I didn’t connect the dots. I could eat dinner and be woken up around 4 or 6am in serious pain. It wasn’t necessarily always that delayed but it was always a few hours or more after eating.
The more fattier of a meal you eat when your having gallbladder trouble, the more severe the consequences.

It’s relatively easy to check ones gallbladder. You can start with an ultrasound to check for stones or sludge (sorry just saw in the comments you just had this done) and if nothing is found there but pain persists you can have a hidda scan to see how well the gallbladder functions. The ultrasound can tell them if you have gallstones, sludge or other issues within the biliary system but it can not tell how well your gallbladder is functioning. You would have to have the hidda scan for that. An MRCP is also an option for getting a good look at the gallbladder and biliary system.

Good luck and I hope it all gets figured out soon, whatever the issue is.

[Khimono]

How did your results discussion go?

[ThirstyMMM]

Turns out I have 3 gallstones, with the largest being 9mm. They also found a polyp, which they said could be reviewed in 12 months with a scan if the gallbladder isn't removed. I also have 'mild hydronephrosis' of my right kidney, but that is most likely due to a condition I suffered from and was rectified when I was a baby, and is simply one of the lingering side effects which is a slightly enlarged kidney.

From here my local GP has referred me to chat with a surgeon to discuss the best course of action, which I imagine would be to remove the gallbladder.

I have a slight concern about removing the gallbladder (surgeries scare me), but given it can be a keyhole procedure it shouldn't be too bad, and if it needs to be done it needs to be done.

[Careful1]

I had my gallbladder removed and hands down it was the easiest surgery I have ever had. Personally, I would rather have it removed then to continue to deal with the pain as it can and often does get worse as time does on and if your unlucky like me and one of the stones keep getting stuck in the neck when the gallbladder is full that’s terribly painful.

In the meantime while you are waiting for consult with surgeon and weighing your options, try to eat as low fat as you can as this will help you lessen the attacks.

[ThirstyMMM]

I had my gallbladder removed and hands down it was the easiest surgery I have ever had. Personally, I would rather have it removed then to continue to deal with the pain as it can and often does get worse as time does on and if your unlucky like me and one of the stones keep getting stuck in the neck when the gallbladder is full that’s terribly painful.

In the meantime while you are waiting for consult with surgeon and weighing your options, try to eat as low fat as you can as this will help you lessen the attacks.

Thanks for your kind advice and helping put my reservations at ease.

The partner of my girlfriend's sister had his gallbladder removed three or so years ago and he echoed your thoughts. He had many small gallstones, whereas mine are three big ones.

Thankfully the symptoms have eased somewhat and I can have some fatty meals, but I can't go over the top. I went out for a pizza the other night, and was awoken at 2AM with severe heartburn/reflux and abdominal discomfort. Is that what you experienced, or was your on another level?

[Careful1]

In the beginning yes it was as you describe. I had no idea what what was going on. It started as here and there, uncomfortable but not anything I couldn’t handle. As time went on though it started happening more and more and the discomfort started to become less and less tolerable. I kept going to the doctor, going to the ER getting cat scan after cat scan and never got any answers. I will never forget the last gallbladder attack I had. It was Father’s Day and I had taken my husband to lunch at a Mexican restaurant near my house and had invited people over for a BBQ later that eve. About 3.5 to 4 hours after lunch I was at the grocery store picking up what I needed for the BBQ and by the time I neared the check out line it hit me. It was literally the worst pain of my life!! I can’t even really put into words what it felt like. I initially thought I was having a heart attack at 28 years old. The pain was all in my upper abdomen, spread up and across my chest and straight through to my back. It felt as though some had punched me in the stomach several times until they broke through the skin and then we’re grabbing and twisting my organs. The pain was so bad I could hardly breath and I really thought I was gonna die. I was hysterical in the store, I’m sure people around me didn’t know what to think. My husband got me to the car and drove me to the ER. I screamed and cried the entire way. I couldn’t even sit down, I was on my knees facing the back of the seat. When we got to the ER they couldn’t even get me to sit still long enough to get a blood pressure reading so they gave me a shot of morphine. This made my pain 10 times worse. I started screaming at the nurse asking what she gave me because it made it worse. She said it was impossible because she gave me a strong dose of morphine. I later found out that an increase in pain after being given morphine can be a sign of gallbladder trouble because it causes spasms in the splinter of the odie (spelling?).
They had to eventually give me a strong sedative so they could perform an ultrasound.

They ended up finding three fairly large stones, one of which was stuck in the neck of my gallbladder preventing the bile from flowing out.