Your Gallbladder: You Don’t Really Need It - Watch WebMD Video

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Gallbladder Basics

Reviewed By: Matthew Hoffman,

SOURCES: Medical Reference from Medstar Television. www.medstar.comAmerican College of Gastroenterology, http://www.acg.gi.orgMedem, http://www.medem.comNational Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease, http://www.niddk.nih.gov

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Narrator:

Just weeks ago Barbara Fister could only dream of eating ice cream. It just didn't agree with her.

Barbara Fister:

I would get a burning feeling in my stomach, indigestion, some nausea and really severe diarrhea.

Narrator:

She was diagnosed with gallbladder disease and has recently had surgery to remove the organ. Now life is sweet again.

Barbara:

I think I'm gonna' have a small dish of the Death by Chocolate.

Marion McDonald, M.D.:

Amazingly you don't need your gallbladder.

Narrator:

The gallbladder is a pear-shaped sac near the liver. It stores extra bile and releases it when necessary to help your body absorb fats. Gallstones or a dysfunctional gallbladder can interfere with the process. And, surgery to remove the organ is often necessary. The good news - says surgeon Marion McDonald - IS that once the gallbladder's removed, the liver takes over.

Marion McDonald, M.D.:

The bile is actually made in your liver. So your liver just picks up the pace. It increases the amount of bile that it makes and runs it through your system a little faster.

Narrator:

The surgery is usually done laparoscopically - with small incisions.

Marion McDonald, M.D.:

Essentially we blow up the abdomen like a circus tent. We make the ceiling go up and the floor go down, then we find the gallbladder, find its attachments and disconnect the attachments to the liver.

Narrator:

Patients can go home the same day -and are usually back to work within weeks - which is nice. But the best part for Barbara?

Barbara Fister:

Being able to eat. It's just wonderful to be able to eat whatever I want at this point.

Narrator:

So she's living it up with 'death by chocolate.' For WebMD, I'm Sandee LaMotte.

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