What Is the Gallbladder?

Author Topic: What Is the Gallbladder?  (Read 3305 times)

Offline sarmin sultana

  • Jr. Member
  • **
  • Posts: 80
    • View Profile
What Is the Gallbladder?
« on: September 18, 2014, 01:48:44 PM »
 Where Is Your Gallbladder?

When your gallbladder starts to hurt, you'll know right away where it is.

"The gallbladder is located in the right upper quadrant of the abdomen right below the liver," says Tomasz Rogula, MD, PhD, a staff surgeon at the Bariatric and Metabolic Institute at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio.

"If there are any problems, typically the patient complains of pain in this location — right below the ribs," adds Dr. Rogula. "Some patients also experience nausea."

The gallbladder is attached to the liver, is about four inches in size, and is oblong or pear-shaped.

What Does Your Gallbladder Do?

The gallbladder's main function is to store bile, which helps the body break down and digest fats that you eat.

"The gallbladder is part of the biliary system, which serves as the storage reservoir for the bile," says Rogula. "It does not produce the bile, but it stores the bile that is currently not being used by the body."

The liver produces bile, which flows through the bile ducts and into the gallbladder, says Rogula. After a meal, bile is released by the gallbladder when the small intestine secrets a hormone called cholecystokinin. Then the bile flows into the small intestine and helps to break down fats — for example, that big cheeseburger you just ate.

Why Can You Live Without Your Gallbladder?

To treat certain gallbladder problems, sometimes the gallbladder must be surgically removed. But not to worry — the gallbladder is one organ your body can do without.

People who undergo surgical removal of the gallbladder rarely have any problems with biliary system function after surgery, says Rogula. The body can cope with losing its extra storage space for bile by filling the bile ducts — which transport bile from the liver to the small intestine — and using them to store the excess bile. Sometimes, as a result of this surgery, Rogula notes that the bile ducts may become slightly distended, but this generally isn't a big concern.

What Can Go Wrong With Your Gallbladder?

By far the most common gallbladder problem is gallstones — tiny stones that form from hardened bile and cholesterol. Gallstones can block the release of bile from the gallbladder and cause:

    Severe pain, particularly after eating fatty or greasy foods
    Jaundice (yellowing of the skin and eyes)
    Inflammation and irritation of the gallbladder walls

Other gallbladder problems may also occur, but these are extremely rare:

    Gallbladder cancer
    Perforation (tearing or rupture) of the gallbladder
    Gangrene, if adequate blood flow to the gallbladder is blocked
    Pancreatitis, caused by gallstones migrating out of the gallbladder and then blocking the pancreatic ducts

Gallbladder problems like gallstones may never cause any pain at all, but that doesn't mean that they will resolve themselves. If you experience pain in your upper right abdomen — particularly after eating very fatty, heavy, or greasy foods — think about your gallbladder first. See your doctor to get the problem checked out, and take care of your gallbladder problems.


Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallbladder


Sarmin Sultana
Asst. Coordination Officer
BBA Program