How Are Gallstones Diagnosed, and How are They Treated? Your Main Questions Answered

Everyone has heard of gallstones, but not everyone can explain why they are caused, what their real symptoms are, and, more importantly, how they can be diagnosed as well as treated. Gallstones, in essence, are deposits made of digestive fluid that has hardened and formed in a person's gallbladder. Most gallstones are small and can hardly be detected, but some large ones can be as big as a golf ball. Some people can develop only a single gallstone, but others can develop more than a few. Gallstones don’t normally cause any symptoms, but those who feel symptoms are often recommended to undergo treatment, which is usually surgery (whether it’s laparoscopic or open). If you think you may have gallstones and would like to know how to deal with them, here's what you should know about how gallstones are diagnosed, and how they are treated: your main questions answered.

The diagnosis of gallstones

There are a variety of procedures and tests you may have to undergo to determine if you have gallstones, but the good news is that these tests are nothing to be afraid of – in other words, they are often non-invasive.

For instance, you may have to go through an abdominal ultrasound, which involves using a transducer that the specialist moves around your abdominal area. The transducer will transmit signals to the computer, and this produces images to show whatever is present in the abdomen. Another diagnostic test is an endoscopic ultrasound or EUS, which may help see and locate smaller gallstones missed by abdominal ultrasound. The specialist uses an endoscope (a thin and flexible instrument in a tube shape) and passes this through the mouth to the digestive tract. A transducer will then create sound waves that produce a precise view and image of the tissues.

Other tests include an HIDA or hepatobiliary iminodiacetic acid scan, a CT scan, an MRCP (magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography) test, or oral cholecystography, amongst others. Specialists may also perform blood tests that can reveal jaundice, an infection, pancreatitis, and other issues caused by the stone formations.

Your options for treatment

As already stated, most individuals don't experience any symptoms, but if you have symptoms such as pain in the upper rightmost portion of your abdomen, you may be a candidate for further treatment. Your options for treatment may include surgery such as a cholecystectomy, which removes the entire gallbladder so the gallstones will no longer recur. This can be a suitable or viable option if you want to be sure that the gallstones don't come back.

There are two kinds of gallbladder surgery, as London experts like the London Surgical Group confirm: laparoscopic surgery and open surgery. Laparoscopic gallstone surgery, as London Surgical Group explains, is not as invasive as open surgery and is done as an outpatient case, which means you can go home on the same day, and you can perform your normal duties again after about a week.

Open surgery is only done nowadays when the gallbladder is seriously infected, inflamed, or already scarred because of other operative procedures, and open surgery may be performed by your physician if any complications occur with the standard laparoscopic surgery. With this, your hospital stay may be longer, and you will be able to go back to your normal activities after approximately a month.

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