Ox Gallstones Zambia

MONDAY’s story about charges being laid against an abattoir worker over the theft of bovine gallstones has aroused considerable interest in the blogosphere. A lot of readers have been suggesting that processors must be making a fortune from them, at beef producers’ expense.

But the truth is that they are extremely rare and are a highly prized byproduct of the meat processing industry. So much so that pristine specimens can rival gold bullion prices and fetch up to EUR35,000 a kilogram in the Far East.

What is Gallstones?

Gallstones are extra pieces of cholesterol that form inside your gallbladder or in the bile ducts. They can block a tube or duct that sends bile to your small intestine and cause pain. The pain is called biliary colic and it usually settles when the stone moves, unblocking your duct. But if it doesn’t, it can get stuck or cause a serious blockage.

They’re very common, affecting about 10% of people in developed countries and 20% in those over age 65. But they’re not always easy to detect. If you have symptoms of a blocked duct or gallstones, see your doctor to make sure you don’t have cholelithiasis.

Symptoms typically occur after eating a meal with fat or when your gallbladder gets clogged. Your doctor may suggest taking a medication to dissolve your gallstones. But the chances are slim that you’ll see much of a difference with this treatment.

Your doctor will also look for gallstones using ultrasound, which can show where your ducts are blocked. They may use this test before they perform an ERCP to find out whether the duct is blocked, or after they remove your gallbladder (a procedure known as cholecystectomy).

You’ll probably need more tests to diagnose your condition. Your doctor may do a scan of your abdomen and pelvis to see where your ducts are blocked, or they might do an endoscope if your gallbladder is blocked. You might also get a special type of MRI, called magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP).

The scans will show your bile ducts and show if any stones are in them. Then your doctor will talk to you about whether or not you should have treatment for your bile ducts and gallbladder.

A cholecystectomy is the standard procedure for treating a blocked duct, but other types of surgery may be used as well. If your ducts or gallbladder become blocked, it’s best to have them removed before they cause problems.

Gallstones are formed by a combination of cholesterol, bilirubin pigment and calcium salts in the body. They are most common in people with chronic liver disease or those who have bile duct infections. The main risk factors are obesity and diabetes, but there are other things that can lead to them as well. Keeping your cholesterol levels low, and eating a healthy diet can help reduce the number of gallstones in your system.

Symptoms

If a gallstone gets stuck in your bile ducts, it can cause pain and swelling (inflammation) of your gallbladder. This is called cholecystitis and usually occurs when a gallstone lodges in the neck of your gallbladder or in one of the bile ducts that go from your gallbladder to your small intestine.

Your body needs bile to break down fats and absorb nutrients from foods. But if the bile doesn’t travel to your small intestine as it should, you might have problems with digestion and absorption of nutrients. This can make you feel ill or be short of energy.

Symptoms are usually mild and don’t need treatment. But if you have severe symptoms, your doctor may recommend a procedure to remove the gallbladder or a part of your liver (cholecystectomy).

This can help to avoid pain and complications from the stones blocking your bile ducts. Your doctor can do this through surgery or with a procedure that uses shock waves to break up the stones and allow them to pass through your ducts.

The main symptom of gallstones is a sudden attack of abdominal pain, often called biliary colic. This is a dull, persistent pain in the upper right quadrant of your abdomen that lasts from 20 minutes to several hours and can be accompanied by nausea or vomiting.

If you have a gallstone, your doctor might suggest an ultrasound scan of your bile ducts and stomach to find out which ones are blocked. This test can also show other health conditions that might be causing your symptoms.

Your doctor may also prescribe medication to reduce the amount of cholesterol in your bile or to dissolve your gallstones. Oral dissolution therapy, which involves taking medications by mouth to dissolve the cholesterol in your bile, is often used.

In addition to reducing cholesterol, oral dissolution therapy also helps to lower your risk of having a bile duct blockage in the future by making it easier for your gallbladder to empty bile into your small intestine. The resulting increased bile flow also can prevent the formation of new gallstones.

Diagnosis

The most common way to diagnose gallstones is through an abdominal ultrasound. This involves moving a small device (transducer) back and forth over the stomach area, sending signals to a computer which creates images of the surrounding tissues.

The test also allows your doctor to measure the size of your gallbladder, liver and bile ducts. If you have a large gallstone, your doctor may want to perform an endoscopic ultrasound (EUS), which uses a thin, flexible tube (endoscope) to examine the inside of your body.

Other tests that can help to diagnose gallstones include x-rays, blood tests and scans called hepatobiliary or hepatopancreatic imaging. These tests use radioactive substances to detect gallstones and can show if your gallbladder is blocked with stones.

In some patients, a type of surgery called laparoscopic cholecystectomy can be performed to remove the gallbladder and enlarged gallstones. This is a minimally invasive procedure that can reduce blood loss, shorten recovery time and reduce complications.

Another option is to take ursodeoxycholic acid tablets. This can dissolve the stones and stop them from forming, but it isn’t as effective in the long term. Some people with gallstones experience side effects, such as nausea and bloating.

If your symptoms don’t improve with treatment, your doctor may recommend that you have a test called ERCP, which involves passing a specialized device (catheter) into your bile duct. This is often done under sedation and can be carried out as an outpatient procedure.

Your doctor will then inject a special radioactive substance into your vein. The tracer will then be detected by a special camera. It will show the lining of your bile ducts, and if it detects a stone, it will appear on the screen.

You’ll then need a follow-up appointment with your doctor to discuss what was found. The results of the investigation will help to decide the best course of treatment for you.

As you can see, the diagnosis of gallstones is complex and requires a thorough investigation. However, the good news is that treatment can often resolve most cases.

Treatment

Gallstones are formed in the gallbladder, and are made up of a mixture of cholesterol, bile and minerals (calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, calcium carbonate and potassium). They can form on their own or as a result of inflammation in the gallbladder, called cholecystitis. The symptoms of cholecystitis are abdominal pain and fever in the right upper quadrant (RUQ).

A number of tests are used to diagnose gallstones. These include ultrasound, endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS), magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) or endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP).

The most common test for gallstones is abdominal ultrasound, which involves moving a device back and forth over your stomach area. EUS is less invasive and can help find smaller stones that may not be visible on an ultrasound.

Your doctor also will order blood tests and other tests to check your condition. These tests can help detect infection, jaundice and other complications from gallstones.

If your GP finds you have gallstones, they will recommend a treatment plan that is based on your symptoms and the results of the diagnostic tests. The most important part of the treatment plan is keeping your gallbladder healthy, as having too many stones can cause a serious problem.

In some people, the pain caused by gallstones is severe enough to require surgical removal of the gallbladder (cholecystectomy). However, in most cases the stones don’t cause any problems or symptoms, and this is usually not recommended.

Surgery is only necessary if the stones are large and difficult to remove. If the stones are small, medical treatment with ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) can dissolve them. The treatment is very effective, but can take up to 9-12 months to work, so you should only try it if the stone is very small or if you’re very ill.

Other treatments for gallstones include extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy, which uses high-energy ultrasound waves to destroy the gallstones. The procedure is performed in hospital and is often carried out under sedation.

Gallstones are a major concern for many patients, especially for those with hepatitis C or those who have a family history of gallstones. Women who have a family history of gallstones have a 70% chance of developing them during their lives, and are more likely to develop them in pregnancy.

Ox Gallstones Zambia