Abdominal Pain Forum - Causes for vomiting bile

Conditions and Diseases > Abdominal Pain Forum > Causes for vomiting bile

Abdominal pain and bellyaches are common. Though most cases of abdominal pain aren't serious, sometimes you will need to see a doctor. We’ll review some of...

Q: Causes for vomiting bile

asked by: DoctorQuestion on June 28th, 2009

Five years ago, I had my gallbladder removed in an emergency procedure (I went to the doctor, then got checked into the hospital). The pain I experienced before surgery greatly diminished after the operation, but within a few months returned. I saw several doctors (including a few specialists), but felt lost in the shuffle and stopped seeking treatment when no one could diagnose/ "cure" me. About 2 years after that, another doc diagnosed me with ulcers (drank urea, blew in a bag, then took antibiotics).
Recently, my pain has intensified. While it has remained relatively constant over the past 5 years (most notably frequent vomiting and daily naseaua), I had begun experiencing some new symptoms. My poop has been orange, liquid, and oily. Sometimes it seems foamy. I also now vomit bile more frequently (bright yellow, sometimes tinged green, with a taste that says it can't be anything BUT bile). It's hard to eat.
Any ideas on what to do? I'm worried about the long term affects.

Replies(1)

Dr. Goce Aleksovski , MD

replied on July 6th, 2009

Abdominal Pain Answer A6901

Given the symptoms you reported (nausea and vomiting bile, orange, liquid, oily and sometimes foamy feces), you might be experiencing bile metabolism due to inadequate lipid absorption disorder and/or production and excretion. The exact diagnosis for removing the gallbladder before two years was not given.

In case the liver tissue is somehow affected, then it might explain the decrease in lipid absorption.

It is hard to tell for sure what exactly might have caused your condition. However, you might want to visit a specialist for internal diseases, particularly a specialist in liver diseases, for a physical examination, laboratory tests (which might reveal increased levels of hepatic enzymes-AST and ALT),an abdominal ultrasound scan or CT scan or other visualizing method.

You might also want to have this done sooner rather than later, because vomiting bile is considered a rather serious symptom.

DISCLAIMER: "Ask a Doctor" questions are answered by certified physicians and other medical professionals who volunteer their time on eHealth Forum. For more information about experts participating in the "Ask a Doctor" Network, please visit our medical experts page. You may also visit our Abdominal Pain , for moderated patient to patient support and information.

The information provided on eHealth Forum is designed to improve, not replace, the relationship between a patient and his/her own physician. Personal consultation(s) with a qualified medical professional is the proper means for diagnosing any medical condition.

This question has been answered by the doctor. This topic is now open for public discussion, however no comments below this point will be answered by a doctor.

Learn About Us

Get Help

Join In

Do More

We comply with the HONcode standard for trustworthy health
information:
verify here.

The site is not a replacement for professional medical opinion, examination, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your medical doctor or other qualified health professional before starting any new treatment or making any changes to existing treatment. Do not delay seeking or disregard medical advice based on information written by any author on this site. No health questions and information on eHealth Forum is regulated or evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and therefore the information should not be used to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease without the supervision of a medical doctor. Posts made to these forums express the views and opinions of the author, and not the administrators, moderators, or editorial staff and hence eHealth Forum and its principals will accept no liabilities or responsibilities for the statements made. Schizophrenia health sitemap.
This page was last updated on January 1, 2009.
© 2008 eForums, Inc