If you have no symptoms or signs of liver disease, for example, then your doctor may ignore this single test finding and opt for continued observation and liver checks from time to time. It can be a transient quirk or indicate recent intake of alcohol or certain medicines. It is unusual to have one of these enzymes elevated by itself without others. Are there other tests for liver function? - C.M.O.ĪNSWER: Gamma GT (glutamyl transpeptidase) is one of several enzymes that appear in the blood when there is any injury of liver, bile duct, pancreas, kidney or lung tissue. DONOHUE: My internist ordered a number of liver blood tests. And, of course, any abdominal or back pain in a person with a gallbladder illness history always takes on special significance.ĭEAR DR. There the pain is so severe that the patient seeks emergency help no matter the source. NOTE: This does not mean gallbladder patients can ignore the advice to avoid excessively fatty meals in general.Īll such discussion would be moot in the case of an acute gallstone attack. Recent evidence tells us this is not so, although sometimes the pain can occur an hour or so after any meal. We used to believe that the gallbladder will act up after a greasy meal. Some patients describe a gnawing ache lasting from an hour to an entire day as opposed to a sharp, jabbing sensation. Most often, the pain from a gallbladder disease appears in the upper-right abdomen, with frequency ranging from weekly to almost daily. Such symptoms can emanate in places other than the gallbladder, as in the stomach or intestines. G.G.ĪNSWER: Abdomen-centered pain is difficult to trace. I save your columns (I have for years) and cannot find this, although you do answer readers' questions on stones from time to time. DONOHUE: I wonder if you might list the symptoms of gallstones. Enclose a long, stamped (52 cents), self-addressed envelope and $2.ĭEAR DR. Please let me know.įor more information about the gallbladder and its problems, send for pamphlet No. You should have learned the cause of your acalculous bladder by the time your read this. And it can come from simple bladder infection. In others, it might be the effects of extensive stomach surgery. Sometimes it happens to people on near starvation diets. Many times, the condition defies explanation. Why is this happening? It is hard to say. In most cases, the bladder has to be removed on an urgent basis. But your problem is a notch or two above normal gallbladder trouble. An inflamed and swollen bladder can bring about the same duct blockage and the same pain that stones create. When a stone blocks the duct, the bile is retained in the bladder, causing pain.Īlthough you have no stones, your bladder is in some kind of trouble. When you eat, the bladder gets the signal to contract, sending a spurt of this bile down a duct leading to the digestive tract. The gallbladder stores bile, a potent digestive aid. Your 5 percent incidence figure is correct. J.A.C.ĪNSWER: You have a gallbladder problem minus the stones. I understand that only 5 percent of gallbladder trouble is this kind. I have developed a condition called acalculous gallbladder.
DONOHUE: I am always interested in your gallbladder items. Perhaps if you were more specific about the kind of amyloidosis you have, I could be a bit more specific about the future.ĭEAR DR. Drugs like colchicine help control things. Treatment depends on the extent of the amyloid process. In the heart there may be enlargement in the kidneys, degrees of failure. If it occurs in tongue tissue, swelling occurs. The amyloid tissue can occur in a number of organs, including the liver, spleen, heart, kidneys and GI tract. Where it occurs, normal function is disturbed, determining the resulting severity and kinds of symptoms. Seen under a microscope, this tissue resembles volcanic lava flow. M.S.ĪNSWER: Amyloidosis (AM-ill-oyd-OH-sis) is a group of diseases whose common feature is the deposition of an abnormal material (amyloid) in body tissue. DONOHUE: I would like to ask you about a disease by the name of amyloidosis. Yours is the first reference to the phenomenon I have seen in the millions of reader letters over the years.DEAR DR. They are rare, and the person is born with them. They are nothing but pigment deposits and don't interfere with vision.
Seen with an ophthalmoscope, they do resemble animal tracks. M.D.ĪNSWER: Bear tracks are small gray to black dots scattered on the retina at the back of the eye. The family is concerned and would appreciate any information you can give us to explain this rare phenomenon. The doctor seemed quite excited and called in his associate to look at his eyes. When an ophthalmologist examined him, he stated he had "bear tracks" in his eye. DONOHUE: A 25-year-old nephew had an eye injury.
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