Question:
Has anyone had their gallbladder removed and it couldn't be done laparoscopically?

I am 21 months post op and I am having my gall bladder removed next week. My surgeon said that he might have to do it open rather than laparoscopic. He said it depends on the amount of scar tissue I have because of my gastric bypass. Has anyone else had their gall bladder removed post op and needed it done open?    — Melissa L. (posted on April 30, 2002)

April 30, 2002
I had my gall blader out laparoscopic 10 years ago, and no problems.
   — Chanel B.

April 30, 2002
Melissa, I'm still pre-op, but I've had my gall-bladder removed open over 10 yrs ago. I don't know how to compare it to the surgery, as I've not had it yet, but if you've had a C-section, it's not NEARLY as bad as that...
   — Trina W.

April 30, 2002
Had my galbladder removed 3 weeks ago at 6 mos post op. The surgeon said that there was a small chance he would have to do it open, but ended up that he was able to do it LAP. He also took pictures of my insides and showed me where i had adheasions, and what the scar tissue looked like. It was kinda cool!!!
   — RebeccaP

April 30, 2002
I had my gall bladder out LAP 5yrs ago, no problems at all
   — Lisa W.

April 30, 2002
I had my gallbladder out Open 5 months after my Open RNY...my surgeon also told me he couldn't do lap because of the scar tissue. The good news is, the recovery was a breeze; even with Open, I was out of the hospital in 2 days, and back to work in 2 weeks. Good Luck to you.
   — Maureen S.

April 30, 2002
Always get a second opinion. Find a Dr. that specializes in lap and you may have a better chance of having it done lap. I have found this out in my search for a Dr. to do WLS, I had open gallbladder way back before they did lap and was told by the first surgeon that I would have to have WLS open. It's one thing if they try and then have to do it open but don't you think they should at least give it a shot before they open you up? I do.....good luck. Lisa
   — Lisa S.

September 7, 2003
I had my gallbladder out but my surgeon had to open me up. For me this surgery was far worse than the actual rny. Thank heavens for pain medication!!!
   — laila

September 7, 2003
I had my gall bladder removed a little over 3 weeks ago. They tell you they may have to do it open rather than LAP for medical consent purposes. Most good surgeons these days can do it lap. I had my LAP RNY approximately 1 year ago and had no problems. But if you give your consent for either, it gives them permission if they run into trouble and can't do it LAP. I was told if they had to do it OPEN, I would have about a 6-8 inch scar from my mid-section going around to the right. But luckily he had no problems and did it LAP. I went back to work last week.
   — Cathy S.