My friend has gallstones?!
Question: My friend has gallstones, she's 21 and still living with her parents, she can't afford to get the gallbladder out. The condition causes her to vomit on a regular basis and I'm afraid she's going to ruin her esophagus. Her parents aren't paying attention to this. I understand she's 21, but still. On top of that, she's been told it's no big deal to have gallstones, that her gallbladder doesn't necessarily need to be removed. She was told this by the very same doctor who told her she needs the gallbladder out. Very odd and frustrating situation. She's losing weight rapidly, doctors aren't calling her back who said they would, and I'm worried.
Is it important to get these stones out?
Answers: My friend has gallstones, she's 21 and still living with her parents, she can't afford to get the gallbladder out. The condition causes her to vomit on a regular basis and I'm afraid she's going to ruin her esophagus. Her parents aren't paying attention to this. I understand she's 21, but still. On top of that, she's been told it's no big deal to have gallstones, that her gallbladder doesn't necessarily need to be removed. She was told this by the very same doctor who told her she needs the gallbladder out. Very odd and frustrating situation. She's losing weight rapidly, doctors aren't calling her back who said they would, and I'm worried.
Is it important to get these stones out?
The gallbladder is nothing to mess with! Gallstones that are not irritating and are stying in one spot can wait, BUT....when they are causing frequent vomiting, weight loss, and they do cause chest pain, need to be dealt with. Gallstones can actually kill. They can become lodged in the ducts of the pancreas, cause inflammation and infection. My sister in law even had a heart attack because she was so sick with hers. I turned yellow when mine blocked a duct in the liver and it took 14 hours to stabilize me before they could do surgery. She sounds very ill with this and she need medical attention. The gallbladder issues can actually aggravate heart conditions at times. I know she has no insurance, but many hospitals have prigrams to either geatly reduce or eliminate the cost of the procedure. The doctors can also reduce or waive their fee. She may be able to have the gallbladder removed by the laproscopic procedure which is minimally invasive...about 4 very small incisions (about 1" each) are used. Some people are out the same day or just overnight. Recovery time is minimal about 2-4 weeks.
She has the right to treatment. If she goes into an ER, they cannot turn her away, it is the law! If that doctor is blowing her off keep calling until you find one. Another good bet is a hospital affiliated with a university...usually lots of residents(almost full fledged docs) who are learning and very good at these types of procedures. Don't give up! She really needs to get taken care of. Unfortunately the uninsured are very often not treated equally...I used to work in a free clinic and it broke my heart at how sick the people were and no one else cared. I hopeyou will let me know how she comes out!
I'm not no doctor or anything but my friend had the same thing she finally decided to go to the doctor because she was tired of being sick. They romoved the gallstones. I dont think vomiting on a regular basis is healthy. If she cant afford it then she go to the county or something. It can get worse you never know.