Guide To Diagnosing, Treating, And Preventing Gallstones

Gallbladder Removal Surgery

An individual with gallstones causing certain symptoms may need to have gallbladder removal surgery. When the gallbladder has become swollen and inflamed, bile ducts have been blocked, or gallstones migrate from the bile ducts into the patient's intestines, surgical removal of the gallbladder is considered. The medical term used to describe gallbladder removal surgery is cholecystectomy. This can be performed with a minimally invasive procedure. During a minimally invasive cholecystectomy, one or more small incisions are made in the abdomen. A specialized scope and surgical instruments are used to access and remove the gallbladder.

Some individuals are not eligible to undergo this minimally invasive procedure because of how the stones are positioned in their abdomen. These individuals require traditional open surgery to remove their gallbladder and treat their gallstones. The main reason behind removing the entire gallbladder instead of just the stones is that the stones are very likely to reoccur in patients treated with this method.

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