Suggest treatment for gall bladder stones and dilation of bile duct

Posted on Wed, 11 May 2016

Question: I am 73 years old. An ultrasound showed gallbladder is filled with stones and my common bile duct is dilated to 8.9 mm. I have been on prescribed OxyContin for. About 12 yrs. My Surgen says he is going to remove the gallbladder laparoscopic but it is not any emergency. My liver looks normal in size and echogenicity, no wall thickening is noted and the pancreas, kidneys and spleen are normal in size and appearance. also all my bloodwork is good. Does this sound ok to you?

Answered by Dr. Swarnava Dattagupta (1 hour later)

Brief Answer:
chronic cholecystitis

Detailed Answer:
Hello.
Welcome to HCM.
This is Dr. Swarnava Dattagupta answering your query.

I understand your concern.
You have stones in gall bladder and your common bile duct is dilated too. You are having what we call as chronic calculous cholecystitis. If you do not have acute exacerbation of symptoms, you should not be much worried.
Yes, you will need operation but as your doctor has said, it is not emergency but an elective operation. It is a long standing condition and hence, not necessarily an emergency. It is good that your pancreas, liver and other organs look normal.
Normal blood reports are required for preparation of operation so it will be helpful too.
So my suggestion will be to followup with your surgeon and get laparoscopic cholecystectomy done as he advises.

Hope I have answered your question.
Consult me for any further queries.
Regards.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Yogesh D