Symptoms of gallbladder disease, as it hurts in women, men

2024 Author: James Gerald | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 14:00

The gallbladder is a small oval organ that plays an important role in digestion. Any inflammatory processes can affect it extremely negatively. To prevent this, it is important to know the symptoms of gallbladder disease, and how this organ hurts in women and men.

Where is the gallbladder located and what does it look like?

The gallbladder is small (up to 10 cm long and 4-5 cm wide) and is shaped like a pear. It is conventionally subdivided into departments:

• neck;
• bottom;
• body;
• sphincter of Lutkens.

For the outflow of bile, it is attached to the common hepatic duct using the neck. The walls of the gallbladder are green and have a complex three-layer structure:

1. Internal - mucous membrane.
2. Medium - consists of smooth muscles, which allows the contraction of the organ, which helps the outflow of bile.
3. Outer - is a connective tissue sheath.

The gallbladder constantly contains bile, the main purpose of which is to promote the normal processing of food. The sphincter of Lutkens, which is located on the line of contact between the duct and the neck of the organ, is responsible for its movement along the ducts.

The gallbladder is located in the area of the right hypochondrium. Its middle part is in contact with the initial part of the small intestine and the stomach, the bottom - with the membrane of the abdominal cavity, and tightly adjoins the liver.

Organ functions

The main purpose of the gallbladder is the accumulation and storage of bile, the volume is up to 80 ml. Body functions:

1. Evacuation. Responsible for the timely movement of bile secretion into the lumen of the duodenum.
2. Secretory. Responsible for the synthesis of certain substances - chlorine, hydrogen, mucin, bile and, according to some studies, calcium and immunoglobulins.
3. Concentration. Responsible for the concentration of bile acids and for the thickening of bile to normal concentration.
4. Adsorption. Elimination of excess fluid from the bile secretion.
5. Reservoir. Keeping secretions between digestion processes.
6. Supportive. Prevention of the formation of complex diseases of the pancreas and stomach.
7. Hormonal. The production by the walls of the organ of the hormone antagonist anticholecystokinin and cholecystokinin.
8. Modeling. Protection against the appearance of spasms in the sphincter of Oddi.
9. Regulatory. Normalization of lipids in the blood.

The main function of the gallbladder is protective. It is this organ that neutralizes water-insoluble fatty acids, which negatively affect several internal organs at once - the mucous membranes of the large intestine and stomach, the liver and the gallbladder itself.

The main symptoms of gallbladder disease

If problems with the gallbladder are not detected in time, then serious diseases can be missed, many of which require surgical intervention. Knowing the symptoms of diseases of the gallbladder, and how it hurts in women and men, will help to determine the disease in this particular organ.

The most obvious of them are:

• bitter belching;
• nausea;
• vomit;
• itchy skin;
• feeling of heaviness and pain in the epigastric region and in the right hypochondrium;
• jaundice;
• flatulence;
• decreased appetite;
• diarrhea or constipation;
• violation of the ability of the stomach to digest food.

To find out what kind of disease gives such symptoms, it is necessary to undergo a complete medical examination.

There is no particular difference in pain in the gallbladder in men and women. Most often, the former simply do not attach much importance to their appearance and attribute the pain to overeating and stress. Therefore, in men, organ diseases are most often diagnosed in an advanced form.

Causes of pain

Painful sensations in the gallbladder can be caused by a large list of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. Most often, they arise due to stagnation of bile in the organ, as a result of which bacteria multiply, inflammation and the formation of stones begin. The most common diseases of the gallbladder include:

• dyskinesia (impaired movement of bile secretion);
• cholecystitis (organ inflammation);
• tumors of different etiology;
• cholangitis (inflammation of the bile ducts);
• cholelithiasis.

Disruption of the gallbladder and its diseases can provoke malfunctions and the development of complications in other digestive organs. In this case, additional symptoms appear.

Tumors

Quite often, tumors of a different nature, which can develop and cause discomfort not only on the gallbladder, but also on nearby organs, do not give pain. Therefore, in order to detect them in a timely manner, experts recommend doing an ultrasound of the abdominal cavity and magnetic resonance imaging at least once a year.

If neoplasms are not treated in a timely manner, they can degenerate into malignant ones. Any tumors are treated only surgically, in some cases the organ is removed completely.

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Cholangitis

Women are more often susceptible to inflammatory processes in the bile ducts. Usually cholangitis occurs against the background of pancreatitis or gallstone disease. Inflammation is accompanied by the following symptoms:

• jaundice;
• nausea;
• pain in the area of the right hypochondrium.

Cholangitis is a complication of other inflammatory diseases of the gallbladder, so their timely diagnosis will help prevent its development.

Dyskinesia

This disease refers to disorders of the smooth muscles of the biliary tract. Against its background, there is a decrease in motility and the removal of bile secretion from the organ.

To prevent dyskinesia, it is important to know how the gallbladder hurts and what symptoms are typical for it. Signs of the development of the disease:

• violation of the stool;
• nausea;
• vomit;
• stabbing pain in the right hypochondrium, radiating to the shoulder and under the scapula, which appears with improper diet, stress and after too much physical exertion.

Due to symptomatic pain of a periodic nature, patients often do not seek medical help, but get rid of them with the help of antispasmodics. If dyskinesia is not treated in time, it can cause other, more serious diseases.

Cholelithiasis

This disease is one of the most dangerous, since stones from the gallbladder, starting to move, cause not only severe pain, but can also stop in the biliary tract. In some cases, this can be fatal.

Telling how the gallbladder hurts with gallstone disease, most patients note that the pain is dull, pulling and constant. The main symptoms of this disease include:

• diarrhea and constipation alternating with each other;
• jaundice;
• progressive weakness;
• heaviness in the abdomen, especially worse after eating;
• nausea;
• vomit;
• pain in the right hypochondrium.

In a state of remission, patients usually do not develop the above symptoms. With gallstone disease, a surgical operation is most often prescribed, during which either stones or the entire organ are removed. It depends on the severity of the disease and the degree of damage to the inner walls of the gallbladder.

Acute and chronic cholecystitis

The development of this disease can be triggered by a variety of (both external and internal) factors. Common ones include:

• improper nutrition;
• regular psycho-emotional stress;
• excessive alcohol consumption;
• stress.

Pain with cholecystitis can be both periodic and permanent. Symptoms in the acute and chronic course of the disease are almost the same:

• a feeling of bitterness in the mouth;
• flatulence;
• nausea;
• vomiting, often with the presence of bile;
• physical weakness;
• excessive sweating;
• paroxysmal pain in the abdomen on the right side, often radiating to the scapula, shoulder or collarbone.

This disease is accompanied by other ailments of the gallbladder, gallstone disease and dyskinesia.

There is a non-calculous form of cholecystitis, which is characterized by the absence of stones in the organ and biliary tract. It is most often affected by women of middle (35-45 years old) age.

Can there be pain after removal of the gallbladder

Many patients are interested in whether the symptoms of gallbladder disease can persist, and how the location of the organ hurts in women and men after its removal.

To find out, you need to know what happens to the body after surgery. The restoration of the digestive process takes 6-12 months on average. At this time, the patient may periodically feel dull pain in the right hypochondrium. To avoid them, it is recommended to follow a special diet.

Outcomes

If a person develops discomfort and pain in the abdomen, they should immediately undergo a medical examination. It is important to remember that timely detected diseases of the gallbladder and their timely treatment can relieve negative changes in the organ.