What is Cholecystectomy and Who Needs It?

How have you been feeling lately? Have you been experiencing pain that starts in the center of your upper tummy or the epigastric area that spreads to the right upper back of your shoulder blade area? Do you have trouble moving around and the pain does not go away no matter what position you take or do? Does you condition prevent you from taking normal or deep breaths. Did the pain start with the duration of 15 minutes then to 24 hours? Doe the pain keep you up at night or enough to wake you up from deep sleep? Does the pain occur after meals? Do you experience frequent vomiting? Do you have nausea, loss of appetite, fever, dark urine, yellowing of the skin, light-colored stools and chills? Better get yourself to the emergency room, these pains will not go away until the proper treatment/ procedure is done. This is a very painful condition that one should not tolerate nor dismiss as normal. These are the symptoms of gall stones in the gall bladder.

Laparoscopic cholecystectomy is a procedure endorsed by the National Institutes of Health for the past 2 decades, as an effective and safe surgical treatment for the removal of the gallbladder or gallbladder surgery. The review endorsed the numerous benefits of laparoscopic cholecystectomy and its effectiveness compared to open cholecystectomy. This type of surgery is done requiring small incisions in the abdomen that allows the insertion of operating ports, small cylinder tubes about 5 to 10 mm in diameter, through which surgical instruments with a video camera are placed into the abdominal cavity. The camera transmission is seen via video on a screen where the doctors monitor the course of their surgery. 

The camera shows the surgical field and sends magnified image from inside the body to a video monitor feed. This gives the surgeon a close-up view of the tissues and organs. The National Institute of Health panel noted that this type of procedure, laparoscopic cholecystectomy, should be performed by certified surgeons, experienced in this form of surgery only on patients with confirmed gallstones. This form of laparoscopic surgery has now replaced traditional open cholecystectomy as the first-choice of treatment because open surgery leaves the patient prone to infections.

Why is gallbladder removal necessary? In America alone, half a million have their gallbladder removed every year. Cholecystectomy is defined as the surgical removal of the gallbladder. It is treatment commonly done on patients with gallbladder conditions or manifesting symptoms of gall stones. Mostly considered an out-patient surgery, meaning patients can be discharged the same day as the surgery or the following day. This type of surgery is done requiring small incisions in the abdomen that allows the insertion of operating ports, small cylinder tubes about 5 to 10 mm in diameter, through which surgical instruments with a video camera are placed into the abdominal cavity. The camera transmission is seen via video on a screen where the doctors monitor the course of their surgery. 

The camera shows the surgical field and sends magnified image from inside the body to a video monitor feed. This gives the surgeon a close-up view of the tissues and organs. It is one of the most common operations performed in surgery today. Cholecystectomy can be performed through a single incision through the navel using the spider vein surgical system to remove the gall bladder. This is a recommended method compared to the traditional method for it leaves only a small almost invincible scar. The gall bladder is a pear-shaped pouch found in the upper right part of your abdomen. It stores the bile, which is a digestive fluid produced by the liver, that aide the digestive system in breaking down fatty food. Gall stones are formed in the gall bladder when these substances are of balance. The sad thing is, in many cases gall stone problem may remain undetected, gall stones cause no symptoms until it is too late. Get checked by a doctor today.

Bariatric Surgery is the Weight Loss Solution

Is your weight a problem? Have you exhausted yourself trying all the kids of diet, buying all those expensive fitness machines, going through extensive gym training for long periods, only to double your weight after a month or so? Have you experienced extreme weight issues since your teenage years and the situation is still recurring even after decades of determination to lose weight. Do not lose hope for there are procedures available to treat obesity. Do some research and consult a doctor to know which one is best suited for you.

Bariatric surgery is a procedure recommended to be performed on people who are obese. Extreme obesity is a serious health problem which cannot be resolved through exercise and diet. Types of weight loss surgery vary and often have a lot of risks and complications attributed to it like hernia, infections and blood clots. Losing weight is achieved by removing a portion of the stomach, biliopancreatic diversion with duodenal switch or sleeve gastrectomy, or by reducing the size of the stomach with an implanted medical device, also called gastric banding. Another procedure done to induce weight loss is the resecting and re-routing of the small intestine to a small stomach pouch or gastric bypass surgery. Having performed this type of surgery helped a lot of people get the weight they dreamed of. On the other hand, it is important to do your own research, find a specialized weight loss clinic near your house and get in touch with an experienced medical surgeon if this procedure is for you.

Medical studies explain that bariatric surgery, not only reduces obesity, also it manipulates the metabolism of patients which causes a condition commonly known as “metabolic syndrome”. 

Undergoing weight loss surgery does not guarantee that a person will no longer gain weight. The surgery allows a person to lose weight due to the extreme alterations done to a person’s system. However, it is up to the person, who went through the surgery, to keep the weight off. It is important to keep a strict diet, undergo a fixed exercise regimen and maintain lifelong extensive medical follow-up if one wants to keep the benefits of bariatric surgery and avoid future complications.

Dr. Christian L. Birkedal MD, Board certified General Surgeon, at 42 years old is a distinguished medical presenter, speaker and writer of medical textbook chapters for Surgery. Dr. Birkedal is a Clinical Associate Professor and teaches at Daytona Beach Community College’s branch of the Florida State University School of Medicine.

Dr. Birkedal treats preform procures such as gastric sleeve, gastrectomy, bariatric surgery (weight loss surgery) and abdominal surgery among others. Dr. Christian L. Birkedal’s office is located at 305 Memorial Medical Parkway Suite 205, Daytona beach, Florida 32117. According to a recent survey, Dr. Birkedal’s clinic was given feedback with their experience and scored 4.2 out of 5 for likelihood of recommending to family and friends. Visit his clinic today to ask about the best weight loss surgery (bariatric surgery) for you.

Reflecting a Different New You

“Don’t judge a book by its cover”; “First impression lasts”, both are well known sayings, but as you can see, it’s very contradicting. But how could anyone not judge according to ‘looks’ when the first impression would begin upon laying one’s eyes on a thing? Humans are by nature that way.  We usually judge people by the outside and not by the inside appearance. That’s the very reason why physical appearance is a matter of utmost importance for many.  Some become too much vain just to look their best.  Sad to say, that those people who were not gifted with physical beauty and those who were once attractive physically suffer from depression which often leads to eating disorder or binge-eating.  Result?  Obesity!

Before they notice, they have already acquired the illness.  In fact, studies show that last 2009, 23% of UK population are obese; while in USA, 34% has been recorded.  Even countries tagged as the “3rd World” have high possibilities to develop obesity.  Some obese persons have decided to lose weight to gain self confidence. But due to the illness itself, loosing weight has become a problem for them. According to some researches made to find cure for obesity, patients who were treated for Gastric Ulcer or Gastric Cancer had reduced weight drastically when they underwent surgery. They applied the same medical surgery to other obese patients for verification purposes and found good results too.  After years of practice and observation, they came up with a solution.  The top procedures that were performed as well as the percentage of weight loss are the following:

v  Gastric Bypass Surgery  --  72%

v  Gastric Sleeve Surgery   --  68%

v  Gastric Band Surgery     --   56%

These procedures are related to bariatric surgery.  A person eligible for this surgery should discuss the matter together with a bariatric surgeon.  A patient must be fully aware about the pros and cons of the various procedures before undergoing, during and after the surgery.  These procedures are not only an option to cure obesity, but it can also help resolve weight related problems such as:

v  Type II Diabetes

v  Hypertension

v  Asthma

v  Arthritis

v  Sleep Apnea

After considering all the important issues you have to know from your Doctor, you will definitely be sure of the decision you are about to make.  Reflect yourself as a different new ‘you’!  Regain the self confidence you have been dreaming of!  Make changes for the better and start a new, healthy and beautiful life!

Visualizing a New You!

How do you view yourself?  Some view themselves as how others view them.  Are you one of them?  I once became a victim of that mind set.  I had tried to become what they wanted to see in me.  But it never brought me true happiness!  Instead it brought me anxieties and deep emotional depression on keeping up with their expectations all the time. As time passed by, I learned that to be truly happy, it must start deep within ‘you’.  If you’re happy from inside, you can glow and shine!

But what if you’re still unhappy about yourself according to your perspective?  Then it is time to change.  Look at yourself in the mirror.  Be true to yourself and ask:

“Is this really what I wanted to be?”

“Is there something wrong with the way I look?”

“Have I done everything within my reach to improve myself?”

“If I change for the better, what would my motives be?”

If being overweight is your problem, try every option available.  Indulge yourself in traditional weight loss programs such as dieting and exercising.  Live an active and healthy lifestyle.  But if traditional methods fail after months of trying, maybe it’s time for you to consider the last option – surgery.  One of the most associated procedures to weight loss is bariatric surgery.  It limits the food and nutrition intake of the body.  Among these procedures, gastric bypass is most recommended by doctors.   Generally, it has fewer complications and risks than other weight-loss surgeries.   You may expect an average loss of 61% of excess weight.  After surgery, you will notice some improvements in your health. Also, other related illnesses due to obesity including diabetes, severe arthritis, obstructive sleep apnea and high blood pressure, will gradually be controlled until healed.  According to the researches made, obese people who undergo this weight loss surgery have improved the quality of their life and have lived much longer than equally obese people who did not undergo the surgery.

Good motivation is another factor to make this procedure successful. The best motivation should come from ‘yourself’. Choosing to undergo this kind of surgery requires a deep understanding and knowledge of the procedure.  Visualize a new ‘you’.  Accept the fact that you need to have a change.  Some centers are available which offer behavioral counseling before and after surgery to make the full transition possible: from the old and poor lifestyle into a new, active and healthy lifestyle - to make a new ‘you’!