My 15 Year Old Son Has Sludge in His Gallbladder and Surgery May Be Required.

Of course we can't give you medical advice on here, and we don't know your son's history (the cause of the murmur, what his internist is saying about his gallbladder, etc), but we possibly can give you a couple of things to think about. Sometimes when you're worrying about your child, you can overlook important questions to ask.

First, make sure that every doctor is fully informed about your son's medical history. Don't assume that a doctor automatically has reviewed his heart murmur records or any cardiology records. Ask "have you taken his heart murmur into consideration?" or "have you spoken with his cardiologist?".

Don't be hesitant to ask the doctor who says "I think we should remove his gallbladder" a question about how that will impact his heart. And have a notepad ready to write down suggestions/answers/notes, etc. If a doctor says a word you aren't familiar with, ask the doctor or a nurse to spell it. I often write down crazy long words as they sound. Then I type them into google, and google corrects the spelling. For example, if you can't spell pneumonia, just write noomonia and google will ask you "did you mean pneumonia"?". It's pretty handy.

Don't be afraid to seek a second opinion. Be respectful and polite, if you really feel that a second opinion might be necessary.

Ask your doctor "if this was your child, what decision would you make" if surgery is only suggested, not necessary.

Keep careful records. Have a file ready with your son's most pertinent records available. This should include any xrays, gallbladder tests, heart tests. Have your son's doctors' contact information readily available. It's amazing how easy it is, in a time of stress, to forget Dr. What's-his-name, or when you saw his primary care physician last. Have these in a handy reference place so you can be ready with answers like doctors' names, addresses/phone numbers, last appointment, etc.

If your son takes medication of any kind, ask the pharmacy for a list of dosages and names. Also, if your son takes any vitamins/supplements/energy drinks regularly, write those down or take pictures of the bottles. Be thorough!!!

i'm glad his mother is concerned about the possible complications of the one with the other. hopefully she's also smart enough to ask your son's actual doctors instead of strangers on the internet what the concerns and risks are.
khairete
S.

As a parent, I would be consulting my Dr vs a parenting site.

Geesh

It's really best to ask your doctor and surgeon these questions.

According to the following article, sludge in gallbladder doesn't always need treatment.

https://www.everydayhealth.com/gallbladder/sludge-in-the-...

What did the Dr say to do? Did they recommend surgery? My chiropractor told me I had a sludgie gallbladder. The were vitamines she recommended me take. She also said to watch my diet not eat lot of fatty foods and to drink lots of water. If they say surgery and you are not comfortable very another opinion. I am not saying you have to go to a chiropractor but that's what I do. If you go that direction find one that is experienced with kids.

Hasn't your son's doctor gone over the risks, benefits, etc? If not ASK him/her.

what does the doctor and hospital say? Do they know of all of his medical conditions? If not, they need to prior to surgery.

Welcome to mamapedia, R..

What does the doctor say?
Does the doctor know about his heart murmur?
Does the anesthesiologist know about the murmur?
THEY are the ones to ask. Not a group of strangers who are licensed medical doctors.

**I** would be concerned with ANY surgery. There are risks with ANY surgery. You need to talk with the doctor and staff to get the answers. As they are the ones examining him.

Good luck!

I'm so sorry about your son's gallbladder. This usually happens to much older people...

The question you are asking here needs to be directed to the cardiologist and/or surgeon. If you have not met any of the team, you should. I would also want to know why the gallbladder has been affected in such a way for a child this age...

My husband has had sludge in his gallbladder almost all his adult life. It's never been more than he can handle as far as pain. There are diet considerations the mom can do but if he needs surgery he needs surgery.

A lot of kids have heart murmurs. The doc should be able to know if there is any risk. IF the heart murmur is serious then he must be seeing a cardiologist and they would need to visit with the mom and discuss the possible issues.