Signs of Gallstones

Abdominal pain that feels normal could be more dangerous than it seems

In the initial stage, people with gallstones may suffer from upper abdominal pain bellow the breastbone. The pain is caused by gallstones blocking the gallbladder that may seem similar to the pain caused by gastritis. The symptoms may include:

• Abdominal distention, bloating, abdominal discomfort, indigestion
• Congestion under the breastbone, especially after consuming high cholesterol foods. Sometimes the congestion causes shooting pain in the right shoulder blade.
• Some patients may experience nausea or vomiting.

As these symptoms may come and go in 1-2 hours, some patients are unaware that they have gallstones and are not diagnosed in time. If gallstones cause blockage in the gallbladder and they are not dissolved, the pain will persist over 4-6 hours. It may lead to a severe abdominal pain under the right ribcage. Some patients may have fever and chills along with other symptoms. This indicates that patient has Acute cholecystitis or inflammation of the gallbladder, which is a severe condition that needs to be immediately treated with surgery.

Danger of Gallstones

Apart from the digestive symptoms mentioned above, gallstones may pass out of the gallbladder and stop in the bile duct, causing blockage in duct. Bile duct connects the liver and the gallbladder to the small intestine. A blockage in the bile duct may result in jaundice, yellowing of the skin and eyes, bright yellow urine and pale stools. These symptoms are life-threatening and put patients at risk of having severely infected gallbladder that could be fatal and therefore need emergency medical care.

For more information, please contact

Surgery Center, Vejthani Hospital.
Call 02-734-0000 Ext. 4500, 4501
English hotline: (+66)8-522 38888