The gallbladder is a small storage pouch beneath the liver. The liver makes bile, a fluid that helps digest fats. The gallbladder stores bile and squeezes it into the intestine when you eat. Bile ducts are the channels carrying bile between the liver, gallbladder and intestine. Gallstones form in the gallbladder and can be present without causing symptoms.

Removal takes away the gallbladder and its storage function, not the liver. Bile continues to be made and flows directly from the liver into the intestine. You can digest food and live without the gallbladder. Some people experience diarrhoea, indigestion or other symptoms after surgery; these often improve but may need assessment if they persist.

The gallbladder connects to the bile ducts through the cystic duct. A stone can block bile leaving the gallbladder or move into the common bile duct. The site of a blockage matters: obstruction can cause biliary pain, inflammation of the gallbladder or jaundice, and gallstones can also be associated with inflammation of the pancreas. A scan result is interpreted alongside symptoms and blood tests.

The liver, common bile duct, pancreas and intestines are not the organ removed in a standard cholecystectomy. Without the gallbladder, bile still reaches the intestine but is no longer stored and released from that pouch in the same way. The change can affect bowel habits for some people, while many return to an ordinary diet. Persistent symptoms have several possible explanations and deserve assessment.

A stone can cause pain when it irritates the gallbladder or obstructs the flow of bile. Gallstone pain can be constant, last more than 30 minutes and occur in the centre or upper right of the abdomen, sometimes with nausea or vomiting. Stones can also cause complications such as gallbladder inflammation, inflammation of the pancreas or jaundice. Ultrasound and blood tests help the team investigate, and further scans can be considered when duct stones are suspected.

NICE recommends offering laparoscopic gallbladder removal for symptomatic gallbladder stones. A stone found incidentally in an otherwise normal gallbladder and biliary tree without symptoms generally does not require treatment unless symptoms develop. Stones in the common bile duct are different: NICE recommends duct clearance and gallbladder removal even if those duct stones are not causing symptoms. Ask where your stones are and how that affects the recommendation.

Some operations are planned, while acute cholecystitis and other complications can require urgent hospital care. NICE recommends early keyhole removal within a week of diagnosis for acute cholecystitis. The timing for an individual depends on clinical circumstances and hospital assessment. NICE also describes gallbladder drainage for gallbladder empyema when surgery is contraindicated at presentation and conservative management has not worked.

Ultrasound looks for gallbladder stones; blood tests can give clues about liver and bile-duct problems. NICE advises considering MRCP, an MRI scan of the bile ducts, if ultrasound has not found duct stones but the duct is widened or liver tests are abnormal. Endoscopic ultrasound can be considered if MRCP does not establish the diagnosis. These tests answer different questions; an ultrasound showing gallbladder stones does not by itself prove a duct is clear.

The clinical decision changes with the finding. An incidental stone in an otherwise normal gallbladder and ducts is different from pain thought to be due to stones, a blocked common duct or acute gallbladder inflammation. Ask your team whether the recommendation is intended to prevent further attacks, deal with a current complication, clear a duct, or a combination of these aims.

If stones are not causing problems, monitoring rather than an operation can be appropriate in the circumstances described by NICE. For some people with symptoms, a clinician may discuss managing pain and avoiding individual food triggers while a decision or operation is pending. These measures may help symptoms but do not remove stones. A wait-and-see plan needs a clear way to seek help if symptoms change; it is not suitable for every complication.

If stones are in the common bile duct, ERCP can clear the duct using a camera-equipped tube passed through the mouth into the digestive tract. Duct clearance may also be performed surgically at the time of gallbladder removal. ERCP deals with stones in the duct, not the gallbladder itself, so the team may also recommend gallbladder surgery. If ERCP cannot clear the duct, a stent may temporarily improve drainage until definitive clearance.

Not every abdominal symptom is caused by gallstones, even when stones are visible on a scan. The NHS England decision aid explains that some people continue to have pain after removal. Ask how confidently your symptoms fit gallstone disease, what other causes have been considered, and which benefit surgery is expected to provide for you.

A conservative plan is an active plan, with a way to manage symptoms, reassess recurring attacks and access urgent help if the picture changes. It may involve avoiding foods that trigger symptoms while awaiting treatment, but symptoms and preferences differ. Tell the team about attacks that interfere with eating, sleep or work, and ask whether new tests are needed instead of assuming the original plan still fits.

ERCP uses an endoscope through the mouth to reach the opening of the bile duct. It is a separate procedure with its own indications and risks, not simply another name for removal of the gallbladder. Ask if duct clearance is expected before surgery or during it, what happens if it is incomplete, and whether a temporary stent requires a further appointment.

Gallbladder removal is performed under general anaesthetic. In keyhole surgery, the surgeon makes several small abdominal cuts, introduces a camera and instruments, creates space with gas and removes the gallbladder through a cut. The gas is released and the wounds are closed. The team may also plan how to identify or clear stones in the bile duct if these are suspected or found.

Open surgery uses a larger abdominal incision and may be needed when the gallbladder is very inflamed or keyhole removal is not possible. The surgeon may change approach during an operation if the findings make it necessary. Open surgery can involve more pain and a longer recovery. Ask about the proposed approach, possible changes and how any duct stones would be managed.

The surgeon separates the gallbladder from its attachments and removes it through an incision. The operation changes the route by which bile reaches the intestine because the storage pouch is gone; the liver continues to make bile. Identifying the relevant duct structures is important because the main bile ducts must remain intact. If inflammation makes the anatomy difficult, the surgeon may need to change the approach for safety.

Before the procedure, ask what the team plans for suspected duct stones and what happens if inflammation makes complete removal difficult. Afterwards, ask whether surgery was completed as planned, whether an open incision or additional procedure was needed, and who will review any tissue results. The answers provide context for wound care and the next steps.

Removing the gallbladder removes the source of stones within it and can relieve pain attributable to gallstones. It does not guarantee that every abdominal symptom will disappear. The NHS England decision aid compares surgery with non-operative choices and explains that outcomes vary. Your diagnosis, severity of symptoms and other conditions matter when weighing benefit.

Complications can include wound infection, blood clots, injury to nearby organs or bile ducts, bile leaking into the abdomen and stones left in a bile duct. A bile leak or injury may need another procedure; retained stones can cause pain or jaundice and may need further treatment. Anaesthetic risks and the chance of complications differ with your health and the operation.

A bile leak means bile has escaped into the abdomen; an injury to a bile duct can interfere with normal drainage. Either can require further investigation or treatment, including another procedure. A stone left in the duct can also lead to pain or jaundice. These are different problems with different treatments, and the symptoms alone do not identify which, if any, is present.

A wound infection affects the area of a cut. A blood clot in a leg is a different complication; a clot can travel to the lungs. Prevention may include stockings or anticoagulant medicines when the care team considers them appropriate. Ask what prevention is planned for you and what symptoms to report; do not start or stop blood-thinning medicines independently.

The UK C-GALL trial randomly assigned adults referred for uncomplicated symptomatic gallstone disease to conservative management or laparoscopic surgery. Its main measure was bodily-pain-related quality of life over 18 months, and the trial did not find a difference between the groups on that measure. This measures a group outcome over time, not whether a particular person had an attack or became pain-free.

Treatment groups were not the same as treatments actually received: some assigned conservative management had surgery, and not everyone assigned surgery had received it by 18 months. The trial was not blinded, and longer-term outcomes remained uncertain. It excluded people with common bile duct stones, prior pancreatitis, obstructive jaundice and other specified complications. It does not replace NICE recommendations or show that waiting is appropriate for an emergency; discuss how your own symptoms and findings compare with the studied population.

On the day of surgery, the team checks alertness, pain and readiness for discharge. Many people go home the same day. If you go home, arrange a lift and someone to stay with you for the first 24 hours. Ask how the wounds are closed, when dressings can come off, whether stitches need removal and which medicines you should take. A longer stay may be necessary depending on your condition or operation.

In the first few days, wounds can be sore and smaller meals may be easier. Light activity can be built up gradually, while strenuous exercise should wait until the team advises it is appropriate. Open surgery, a complication, physical work and other health conditions can all affect the pace. Ask for a plan that fits your actual tasks, especially lifting and standing for long periods.

The NHS advises light activity built up gradually and a normal, healthy diet; smaller meals can be easier at first. Some people return to work in one to two weeks, but open surgery, complications and physically demanding work can change this. Do not drive until you can perform an emergency stop without pain or discomfort, and check your insurance and clinical advice.

Nausea, vomiting, indigestion, abdominal pain or diarrhoea can occur after removal. These symptoms usually improve soon after surgery, but ongoing symptoms may need tests or treatment. The term post-cholecystectomy symptoms does not establish a cause, so a clinician can consider biliary and other explanations. NICE advises seeking further GP advice if food or drink triggers existing symptoms or causes new ones after recovery. There is no need to assume a lifelong restrictive diet for everyone.

After surgery, NHS England advises an urgent GP appointment or NHS 111 help for severe or worsening pain that does not go away, pus from a wound, pain, swelling, redness or tenderness around a wound, yellow skin or eyes, a very high temperature or feeling hot, cold or shivery, or swelling, tenderness, throbbing or cramping pain in a leg. If you have leg pain and swelling with difficulty breathing or chest pain, call 999 or go to A&E. Follow your discharge instructions and seek help for other concerning deterioration. For urgent services outside England, see Urgent help above.