What Happens When Your Gallbladder Isn’t Working Right?
April 29, 2025
By: Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare
Categories: Healthy Living, General Surgery
Tags: Gallbladder disease
You’ve probably heard of the gallbladder, but what does it do? This small, overlooked organ plays a significant role in digestion, even though most don’t think about it until something goes wrong.
The gallbladder is located just under your liver and stores bile, a fluid that helps break down fats to help you digest food. Whenever you eat, especially fatty foods, your gallbladder releases bile into your small intestine through bile ducts to aid digestion.
The bile ducts connect and carry bile through the organs in your biliary system—the gallbladder, liver and small intestine. Your liver produces 27 to 34 fluid ounces of bile each day which is stored in your gallbladder until your small intestine needs it.
Your gallbladder adapts to the amount of bile needed based on your food. For example, after a fatty meal, your gallbladder releases more bile to aid digestion. When there is an imbalance of bile, gallstones can form and migrate to the bile duct, potentially causing problems. 
What Is Gallbladder Disease?
Gallbladder disease begins in the gallbladder or bile ducts when an infection or blockage occurs.
The most common gallbladder disease is gallstones which affect as many as 15% of the population. However, only 20% of those with gallstones experience complications or symptoms. Other less common gallbladder diseases include:
- Cholecystitis
- Biliary dyskinesia
- Gangrene
- Gallbladder cancer
- Cholangiopathy
Symptoms of Gallbladder Disease
When your gallbladder cannot function properly, bile does not flow into your small intestine, causing it to build up in your blood, which can cause digestive difficulties, pain or illness.
Hardened deposits of bile within your gallbladder, known as gallstones, can cause biliary colic, a sudden, intense pain in the upper abdomen. Patients typically experience steady, gripping, or gnawing pain in the upper right abdomen near the rib cage. This pain can be severe and radiate into the upper back or behind the breastbone.
Patients with symptomatic gallstones may develop inflammation in the gallbladder when stones block the bile duct. These symptoms are more persistent and severe than biliary colic and can last for days. The pain often increases when taking a breath, and some patients experience fever, chills, nausea and vomiting.
When your gallbladder experiences ongoing inflammation and irritation, often due to gallstones or other causes, you can develop chronic gallbladder disease, which can cause gas, nausea, abdominal discomfort after meals and chronic diarrhea.
Other symptoms of gallbladder disease include:
- Jaundice
- Dark urine
- Lighter stools
- Rapid heartbeat and sudden blood pressure drops
Treatments for Gallbladder Disease
If you’re experiencing any of these symptoms, TMH Physician Partners – General Surgery can help. Our surgeons are among the most highly trained in the Big Bend area and perform a variety of traditional and minimally invasive procedures.
To diagnose gallbladder disease, your provider will order blood tests, ultrasounds or other imaging techniques. Once diagnosed, your provider will discuss your treatment options:
- Surgery to remove the gallstones or gallbladder
- Observation
- Medication to dissolve gallstones
Removing Your Gallbladder Surgically
If surgery is your best option, your surgeon will perform a minimally invasive procedure called a cholecystectomy.
This procedure can be performed at Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare (TMH) with the assistance of the da Vinci Surgical System. Robot-assisted surgery is a form of minimally invasive surgery that reduces disturbance to surrounding tissues, offering patients shorter recovery times, minimal visible scarring and less post-operative pain.
During the surgery, your surgeon will remove the gallbladder and reroute bile ducts so that they flow directly from your liver to your small intestine. This assures that the digestive process will continue normally so you can live well without a gallbladder.
What Happens After Gallbladder Removal?
After removing your gallbladder, your liver continues to produce bile necessary for fat digestion. However, the bile drains continuously from your liver to your small intestine instead of entering only when you digest food. This change can make it harder for your body to digest fat, and it may take longer to process.
While most people don’t notice significant changes after gallbladder removal, some may experience bloating and diarrhea after eating fatty foods. These symptoms usually last a few weeks but can become a chronic problem for some. If this happens, you may need a special diet while your body adjusts. If symptoms continue to persist, your doctor might prescribe medication.
If you or your loved one is experiencing any symptoms of gallbladder disease, ask your provider for a referral or schedule a visit at TMH Physician Partners—General Surgery.
