Undergoing any surgery is a big decision. However, advanced the technology is, it may be scary and tempting to put off the surgery unless and until some sort of complication occurs. One must always remember, that gall stones will never go on their own and are bound to cause complications with time.

 Before you decide to postpone or defer the surgery, one must understand the risks and benefits of their decision.

The first thing to consider is how gall bladder stones is affecting your day-to-day activities. Even if the gall bladder is not causing any problems, it is advisable to seek the opinion of a specialist surgeon.

 According to Dr. Kapil Agrawal, one of the best gall bladder surgeon in Delhi, the surgeon will look into various factors like your age, size of gall bladder stones, risk of developing complications, presence of any co morbidities like diabetes, hypertension or any history of cardiac illness. After looking into all these parameters, the surgeon will guide you to either go for surgery or you can wait for few years.

Who can wait for Surgery?

An ideal candidate who can wait for gall stone surgery, should have a single stone of size of 8-10mm and should not be suffering from any chronic diseases like diabetes, any cardiac illness or respiratory ailments like asthma or COPD.

                                     Drawbacks for Deferring the Surgery

Having large Gall Bladder Stones:

Patients having large bladder stones with a size of 2 cm or more, have a chance of developing gall bladder cancer, which till date is uncurable in advanced stage. Large gall bladder stones usually don’t cause any pain and tend to remain undetected for a long time. These stones continuously tend to rub the gall bladder walls which causes injury and subsequent development of gall bladder cancer.

Having small gall bladder stones:

Patients having small gall bladder stones tend to develop more complications. These small stones can block the passage of bile which causes severe pain. Sometimes, it may even lead to formation of pus in gall bladder. These stones can sometimes slip from gall bladder into the common bile duct. It can lead to jaundice or even pancreatitis, which can sometimes prove to be fatal if not treated accordingly urgently.

Having diabetes

Diabetes is a very notorious disease and in patients having diabetes for a long time, the sensation for pain can be severely impaired. It has been seen that people do not feel pain even if the gall bladder becomes infected or blocked. In such patients gall bladder can rupture and can even lead to sepsis and the diagnosis is delayed because of inability to feel pain.

No time to optimize your health problems

Patients who are suffering from diabetes, having heart problems, having respiratory problems like COPD, asthma, taking blood thinners etc.  should always go for early, planned repair. If the gall bladder stones become complicated and requires emergency surgery, the surgery can become very risky as the patient is not optimized and chances of post-surgery complications increase tremendously.

Stones may slip into CBD

Small stones, debris from large stones can slip from gall bladder stones into the common bile duct. It results in obstruction to flow of bile which causes jaundice. Such patients have to undergo an additional procedure called ERCP for the clearance of stones in common bile duct. It not only unnecessarily increases your hospital stay and expenditure but it also increases your discomfort and pain.

Gall stones may increase in size

As the time progresses, the gall bladder stones size may increase. With time these stones harden and become difficult to crush during surgery. As a result, the port size might have to be enlarged for the removal of stones. The longer incision not only causes more pain but also makes cosmetically look bad.

Increased Surgical Risk

Laparoscopic hernia repairs are done under general anesthesia. It means that patient has to completely put to sleep with the help of mechanical ventilation. For mechanical ventilation, it is very essential for heart and lungs to function properly.

if the hernia becomes complicated or badly stuck and the patient is not optimized properly, then there are high chances that he might have to go for a surgery under high risk category.

You eventually will require surgery

Fear is not a solution to any problem. One must learn to think wisely that if you have to undergo surgery at one point of time, it better to undergo early surgery under the best conditions. Planned surgeries are always associated with better results.

                                                About Dr. Kapil Agrawal

Dr. Kapil Agrawal is one of the best gall bladder surgeon in Delhi. He is one of the top gall stone surgeons practicing at Apollo Group of Hospitals, New Delhi. One of the very few surgeons, he offers single port surgery for gall bladder stones in majority of the patients. With an experience of more than 20 years, he not only ensures excellent and permanent results but fixed and affordable packages, meticulous post-operative follow-ups and services also form a part of his practice.