Hi lynch!

Just based on your Fscore hx, I would most definitely be wanting repeat fibroscans going forward, you should be receiving lots of "following" in general (given your hx of HCV, Fscore and now your GB), following as frequent as up to even every 6 months - but you are at the mercy of your docs common sense - he knows you and your labs, hx, imagings best.

If I was ever an F3, period, yes, I would be wanting U/S (or mixed/alternating forms of imaging), and, fibroscans, and repeat labs to follow me, labs including AFP's, and labs to also be following my bilis, AST, ALP's etc (in case they also happened to reveal upset/angry GB episodes).

Did you say, you NEVER showed any GB changes of any kind in any of your prior U/S's or imagings?? Just out of the blue right now you only showing stones? Never any other note or comment about your GB on these imaging reports? How many stones and how big are they? Good they haven't bothered you, that's just what we want. You and your doc will be sure to just keep an eye on them now.

Also, did you say one time you got put on statins, and are you still on them? Just curious.

C.

wow that is so informative.  Yes, no symptoms, blood tests normal and the doctor not concerned.  I had a fibroscan before I was cured and it was 15.  Do you think I should get another one?  the 6-month ultrasound look good

Canuck,

Thanks for the input.I've had reflux for years.Sometimes I would get heartburn from a bowl of cereal.Probobly has to do with my job and stress.My Doc says I can take a PPI as long as it's 12 hours before or after the Mavyret. The stones I've had for years as well.Really cause me no grief.He says we'll figure it out after treatment.I'll let you know how the crackers work out.Thanks

Shemp,

Lynch, starting this GB convo off, now has me pondering about your heartburn.

Just like some people find natural ginger can help you feel as though you can "settle" an "upset" stomache, or quell nausea, perhaps even quiet motility and hyper-ruminations (I have wondered if ginger is thought to have an anti-spasmodic effect), if you do not wish to rely on "drugs" for relief of "heartburn", then i would be trying all other common sense things and see what works best for your heartburn - keeping your stomache "busy" with a little food in it, often, (just plain soda crackers periodically throughout the day) sometimes keeps the acid production controlled in a busy-demand way and can stop you sensing the acid-burning sensation in your stomache. People who are having acid/gastric issues sometime take the "sippy" diet, again a theory loosely based on keeping the stomache acid production controlled in a busy way by taking tiny frequent feedings of milk/cream and such, at times as frequently as even on a near-hourly basis!

Gives a whole new meaning and justification for those in-between meal snacks (frequent cracker or milk and cracker snacks). Try eating the foods you think might calm things, experiment and see what works - soda crackers or a sippy milk/cream diet has worked for some. 

I would start with just eating a soda cracker or two periodically through the day when you know you are having the heartburn and see if cracker feedings can temporarily relieve/quell it. 

Another question would be .... are you associating having heartburn with taking the Mav? Are you taking your Mav with food?  I would, i would be taking my Mav with a fairly substantial meal. 

Also, just a thought, my partner is forbidden to hang upset down (discouraged to lay flat really), to bend over, lean over, especially when exerting pressure on his abdomen, as he has a buggered eosophogeal sphincter, he's on PPI's which is his penalty and heaven-sent insurance for the reflux acid burns he is prone to. He has felt quite an improvement since getting on the PPI's fulltime and since being on them has only rarely had a reflux episode since.

I have wondered, when stones are "on again/off again", ie. moving about "occluding" (and/or then sometimes "not-occluding") the duct outlet for bile freely-flowing from the GB and entering the gut when it is supposed to, that perhaps under and during those fleeting obstruction conditions one might sense what you would want to "call" heartburn? Stomache complaints have so many descriptors! ... indigestion, acid indigestion, heartburn, nausea. Stomache and gut things, sometimes hard to discern what the cause of the gastric distress is, hard to apply a descriptor for what you feel, and for the condition! 

No wonder we say things like stomi-cake!

Try some crackers i say Shemp, that can't hurt much.  C.  

Thanks Tig,

Always looking for a second opinion.

Hey Shemp,

While the pain can be similar in nature and share some symptoms, gallbladder disease doesn’t cause heartburn. You may experience pain in the same area, mid and upper chest, but gallbladder pain tends to be more RUQ. Heartburn is caused by excess stomach acid, gallbladder disease doesn’t effect gastric acidity. As far as the administration of Prilosec with Mav, the manufacturer says you can take 20mg with your Mavyret, 40mg must be taken no later than an hour before administration. If your doc recommends 12 hours, I will defer to your doctor’s order.

Omeprazole

§Package insert states no dose adjustments required §40mg daily is highest dose studied

§20mg: Coadminister with GLE/PIB

§40mg: Give one hour before GLE/PIB

¡No interaction with antacids or H2 blockers Mavyret® [package insert]. North Chicago, IL: AbbVie Inc.

Hey Tig,

I have a gallstone question I hope you can enlighten me on.My Dr. told me I have a few and was considering yanking out my gallbladder but wanted to cure the hep c first.I don't have pain and it really doesn't bother me but,can stones cause heartburn? I've had some heartburn issues lately and I don't want to take anything.My Dr. tells me I can take prilosec as long as I separate it by 12 hours from the Mavyret.Any ideas?

Yep, they yanked my gallbladder out in 01. I didn’t have stones though, it just quit working right and caused a great deal of pain. If you don’t NEED to remove it, don’t. I have had other problems with my digestion since it’s removal. I can put most geese to shame... 

A lot of people have stones and they pose no problems at all. They just float around the GB enjoying the day. Some even stick to the wall and are in the same spot on each scan. It’s when they obstruct the opening and cause the GB to inflame you have trouble.

Some medication and high calcium diets will promote these crunchy bits to form, too. It’s something to keep an eye on and just live life, until your doctor decides to do something about. If you’re not having trouble, don’t worry about it. 

Well Hi ya JLynch!

Sorry to hear they see gallstones, but nice they are still doing abdominal U/S's on you (still every 6 moths?) - that is good.

So, you mean .... everything ELSE in your abdominal U/S is "clear" except for these stones (they DO look at a lot of other things and organs in there via an U/S ya know)!

And gallstones, gall bladder sludge, and sometimes evidence of previously insulted or hardworking gall bladders are seen, but nothing is ever needed to be done about it (depending!) - it all depends on many factors whether gall stones are merely a thing of note or a problem that might have to dealt with. How many, how little, how huge, what signs and symptoms/troubles are you and the doc associating directly with these stones?

You have to cough up more info for us to guess on, what the U/S report actually says, what your other labs are, timelines if you have noticed symptoms, what your doc thinks, etc./ etc.

So, if you have been getting U/S's (or any other imaging) every 6 months, then had they NEVER mentioned anything funny at all about your GB before? Was your GB perfect before and all along each time they did an U/S of you, same size, no changes - until just suddenly stones appear at this one last recent imaging??

I recall from some of your old threads ("post treatment blood test "), that you did have a curious alkaline phosphatase (ALP) blip, that coincided with a highish AST and bili - sometimes signs associated with GB complaints, maybe you have been brewing GB things longer than you know of or that your U/S's conveniently "clearly" showed - I don;t know.

Your latest rounds of ALP/ALT/AST's and bili's might be good to compare (over time) to look for elevated patterning that might be pointing to GB inflammation/upset/stones/sludge/obstruction.

I like to know about peoples stones (when it turns out they are packing), when it does come up on the site, just cuz I'm interested and nosey, but to also know how many end up just sitting on the stones long term/indefinitely - we don't get to "follow" very many stones and GB's around here it seems! I know Tig had his GB out, RC too, and other folk for various good reasons, and I know our lovely 5 and a couple others around here also sport some stoney jewels in their GB's - we had one fellow here fairly recently (I cannot actually recall just off-hand this very second how impressive his "stone status was" but he did have an sudden, acute, red hot, emergency GB attack for which he needed immediate GB removal whilst he was in midst of DAA treatment) - I am thinking his GB timing (in relation to the DAA use) was perhaps just cooincidental.

I have no idea the reason (causation) for your stones - bad luck?, you were put on statins you said at one time??, anybody could get GB stones anytime (not just us HCV folk or us HCV-cured folk).

I seems not unreasonable to suspect having chronic HCV could affect all parts of our gastrointestinal system (all parts, GB, as well as liver) and gut and the whole of our body and systems really, being that HCV is a systemic viral infection. 

Details, details man! - man of few words. I would love to talk GB more. What have your labs and symptoms been, what do YOU (and your doc) think and say? 

Nice you check in and post!  C.

PS - have you had anymore any fibroscans, what are your Fscores and kPa's, do they give you AFP's too with your LFT's?

they found some in my gallbladder with my last ultrasound. perhaps it's due to our liver unable to function well under the spell of the virus.

i will let you know what's going on after my next US in OCt. 

NOTHING hurts like it did before tx tho !!

after 23 years i am living the hep c free life.  Just got a clear scan, but  I now have gallstones.... any experience anyone?