Can gallstones give more problems in pregnancy?

[jules30]

thanks for all your replies. I will go get a second opinion. I also had another thought of just keeping to a strict low fat diet to avoid attacks but im sure that when i have got attacks it is not always after eating a fatty meal. I think eostrogen level had something to do with it also.

[pansy]

just wanted to let you know,my sister had gallstones discovered 3 weeks after having her DD..she said the pain was excruciating and i said she may have had an infection after her c Section..It turned out to be Gall stones and she had her gall bladder removed 6 weeks later..She still does get the pain associated with it so is very careful about what she eats..I would seriously be getting another opinion...and look into the option of having it removed ...

[MUMMY4LIFE]

I was told I had gallstones in my 38th week of pregnancy, back in April 06....the pain was unbearable and I was told that possibly after my c-section the procedure would be performed and the stones and gall bladder would be removed. This ended up not being necessary and after the birth, pain disappeared and didn't return until the middle of last year...I had the stones all 13 of them and the gall bladder removed in December of last year.

They generally don't just remove the stones as in most cases the stones will develop again. If you get gallstones, and they can take years to form you have what my Surgeon said, a faulty gall bladder. Gall stones are not natural and are not something that the body will continue to produce after the gall bladder is removed...and most pain should disappear after the procedure.

The liver makes bile and the gall bladder storages that bile until it is needed, generally, after you have eaten as bile helps with digestion. Without a gall bladder you can live a relatively normal life, the bile from the liver just drains directly into the stomach as there is no longer a storage place. The gall bladder contracts when it is expelling bile, stones form when this doesn't happen correctly. The pain comes from the gall bladder contracting down on the stones. If you eat fatty foods it makes the gallbladder work harder and increases your pain.

Gall stones can become dangerous and fatal if they get out of the gall bladder and block the bile ducts into the liver or pancreas...you can become sick very quickly. I have heard about a girl at 20 weeks pregnant, having to have her gall bladder removed...that sounds very unpleasant to me.

HTH's Good luck with your decision...hope everything works out.

[jules30]

thanks for sharing your experience M4L. Im beginning to wonder why my both my doctors (2 that i regularly use) haven't mentioned taking the GB out before getting pregnant.

U would think since it is a pre-existing condition for me that it could definately be possible that it rears its head during pregnancy!!

Will ask specifically ask the doc and get all the pros and cons etc.