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Abdominal pain after gallbladder removal

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May 30th, 2009
I had upper right abdomenal pain and the only thing they found was my gall bladder had some polyps. I agreed to let the Dr. remove the gall bladder. He told me at the time, that it was a 50/50 chance that this is what was causing the pain.
At first I was tender and felt pretty good, and any pain I was still having, I associated it with my incisions healing.
It is now two months since my surgery on March 26, 2009, and for approx. the past month, I am having the pain in my upper right abdomen right at the bottom of my rib cage. The pain goes over to my sternum and maybe as far as two inches below the rib cage. It also causes at times pain on the side and sometimes pain around to my back just above where the kidney would be.
The pain is an achy type pain and if I push different spots under my rib cage, sometimes I will have more pain in one spot than another. It also seems to make it feel better sometimes if I apply pressure to the area or lightly massage the area with my fingers.
I have also noticed that it does not make a real difference if I eat or do not.
I am panicked about this. I made an appointment with the Dr. I will see him the afternoon of June 1, 2009. I made the appt. because I am scared and they squeezed me in because I am going out of town for 1 week on Wednesday.
I hope someone can shed some light on what this might be. I am scared to death that it is cancer. I am sitting here thinking it is liver cancer, or pancreatic cancer, etc.
I will also mention that I have been diagnosed with barretts esophigus and have been being treated for several years by this Dr. taking omeperzole and I have an endoscopy once a year to keep a check on it. It has been staying the same.
I will also mention that I have depression and anxiety, etc and I take the following medications. Nortryptolene, Cymbalta, Clonazepam, Omeperzole, and Atenolol for blood pressire which is well controlled.
My job is administrative work, so nothing strenuous that may be causing these symptoms.
Any answers or help would be greatly appreciated. I am so scared.
Thanks
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Lydia32
replied May 30th, 2009
Experienced User
Do you have any other symptoms? Cough maybe?
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ottopuppy
replied May 30th, 2009
No Cough
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Lydia32
replied May 31st, 2009
Experienced User
First thing, I seriously, seriously doubt it's cancer. The doctor may screen for that as a precaution, but it sounds too similar to other things. The pain is too wide-spread.

Do you have shortness of breath? Any lung symptoms? Is it worse when you take a deep breath? Does it feel like something is rubbing in there sometimes? If so, it might be pleurisy, which is an inflammation of the lining of the lungs. It points to an underlying lung infection, like pneumonia or something. Once the underlying condition is treated, the pain should go away. Ask for a chest x-ray and/or a chest CT to rule out lung issues.

Otherwise, it's probably a muscle issue. All of the muscles in the chest and back are connected, basically. You may have been holding yourself a certain way or moving differently to compensate for the pain you were in and you may have made your muscles tighten up (happened to me *after* I had pleurisy and your symptoms fit mine pretty closely). If this is the case (after other stuff has been ruled out), ask for a referral to a physical therapist. They can work out the tightness in your back, chest, and ribs and show you stretches and stuff to do to make it loosen up.

In the mean time, over-the-counter anti-inflammatories should help the pain or you can ask your doctor for muscles relaxants, if that is the source of your pain.
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ottopuppy
replied May 31st, 2009
Yes I do find it hard at times to take a deep breath. I sort of put it in the words at times I feel breathless.
Thank you for the thoughts and I will mention all to the Dr. on Monday afternoon and will post what he says.
Again Lydia, Thank You.
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Lydia32
replied May 31st, 2009
Experienced User
Yes, make sure you write down all your symptoms and can pin-point the different places it hurts and when. He'll ask if anything makes it better or worse and at what times of the day (worse in the morning, after sitting a long time, etc). Just remember to specifically ask for a chest x-ray or a chest CT. He may also want to ultrasound your abdomen to check your kidneys for stones and such.
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