Biotherapy Alternative Medicine Clinic Treatment for Sphincter of Oddi Dysfunction Following Gallbladder Removal
According to the medical research, sphincter of Oddi dysfunction (SOD) is the often reason for chronic pain and indigestion after gallbladder removal. Digestive problems and chronic abdominal pain after gallbladder removal have the medical term-postcholecystectomy syndrome (PCS).
The sphincter of Oddi is a strategic muscle valve in the duodenum wall that rims the common bile duct and pancreatic duct. This valve regulates the flow of bile from the liver, and gallbladder and pancreatic juice in their way to the duodenum. The proper work of the liver, pancreas, gallbladder, small intestine strictly depends on the proper function of the sphincter of Oddi. Knowing how this sphincter works may give the clue what happens because of the sphincter of Oddi dysfunction after gallbladder removal. It also may help to realize the ways to healing this condition.
In the normal circumstance, liver continually produces liver bile that goes through the net of the bile ducts into the duodenum. The duodenum is the beginning of the small intestine where digestion occurs. In healthy persons, when foods do not enter into the duodenum, the sphincter of Oddi remains closed. Consequently, the liver bile is redirected into the gallbladder. Here, liver bile is concentrated and collected, so gallbladder bile is ready to digest food. Now, gallbladder increases in the size. It retains the low pressure inside the common bile duct.
Opposite process happens when foods go from the stomach into the duodenum. The sphincter of Oddi opens and simultaneously gallbladder contracts; therefore, an abundant amount of the concentrated gallbladder bile and pancreatic juice ejects into the duodenum to digest these foods. It looks like a pendulum effect. Sphincter closes and gallbladder expends, alternatively gallbladder contracts and sphincter of Oddi opens.
The regulation of this complicated work is controlled by the nervous system and blood messengers-digestive hormones. Gallbladder removal, unhealthy eating habits, alcohol, fasting, “harsh” liver cleansing, stress, some medications, recreation drugs and damage the nervous branches surrounding the gallbladder after its removal seriously affect the regulation and normal function of the sphincter of Oddi. Without a gallbladder, many things go wrong, especially spasm or incorrect opening of this valve, which are named as sphincter of Oddi dysfunction (SOD).
Because of the spasm of the sphincter of Oddi and the absence of the gallbladder, liver bile collects in the common bile duct. The pressure within common bile duct growths, duct distends. It leads to constant abdominal pain in the upper right quadrant.
Spasm of the sphincter of Oddi can also create back up of the pancreatic juice, with the increasing pressure within the pancreatic duct. Inactive digestive enzymes, which are stored inside the pancreas initiate the digestion of own pancreas, causing inflammation, pain, and the further destruction of pancreatic tissue. After this, chronic pancreatitis occurs.
It is known, the regular reason for the spasm of the sphincter is constant irritation of it by the aggressive bile and pancreatic juice. Why do bile and pancreatic juice become aggressive and corrode the surrounding tissue? Why did people lose their gallbladder so often? Not so many people even medical professionals have the precise answer.
It is known by medical research that acidification of the bile can cause precipitation of the very aggressive and harmful bile acids. In addition, the precipitation of the bile acids can produce gallbladder stones. It is not surprising that in the beginning, concentrated and collected acidic bile damages gallbladder. No wonder that irritated, inflamed gallbladder is a frequent target for the surgical knife. Without a gallbladder, acidic liver bile that is mixed with acidic pancreatic juice continues to irritate and harm the sphincter of Oddi, bile, and pancreatic duct, and duodenum causing spasms, bile reflux, inflammation, and pains.
When the pancreatic juice also becomes acidic, it can lead to activation pancreatic digestive enzymes inside the pancreatic gland and it’s self-damage.
The aggressive mix of the acidic bile and pancreatic juice irritate and corrode duodenum causing jerky, spasmodic movements. This leads to “wrong way traffic” – bile/pancreatic juice reflux in the stomach, ulcers and even cancers. Bile reflux can reach esophagus creating stubborn heartburn and Barrett’s esophagus that raises the threat of esophageal cancer.
Another unpleasant thing could occur when sphincter of Oddi opens at an inappropriate time, when duodenum is unfilled, with no food in it. Very aggressive mix of acidic liver bile and pancreatic digestive enzymes irritates the empty wall of the duodenum causing uneven, chaotic contractions of the duodenum’s walls. It throws this mixture up into the stomach or even esophagus creating bile reflux, inflammation, gastritis, esophagitis, ulcers, cancer. It can also cause pancreatitis due to reflux from duodenum back into the pancreas. The gaping sphincter may occur after the surgical manipulations on the sphincter of Oddi, as well.
Besides, it is known by medical papers that some endoscopic manipulations inside the sphincter of Oddi can cause bleeding, trauma and eventually scarring and narrowing.
Next cause of the sphincter of Oddi dysfunction is the internal toxicity. Our chemical factory-liver uses bile as a vehicle to eliminate a variety of the toxic, fat-soluble waste material from the body through the intestines. These fat-soluble substances may include toxic environmental chemicals, cholesterol, bile pigments, drugs, alcohol, medications, heavy metals, etc. These poisonous substances in the bile can irritate the sphincter of Oddi and cause spasms and pains, as well.
Another culprit of the sphincter of Oddi dysfunction is Candida-yeast overgrowth and SIBO-small intestine bacterial overgrowth. We described it in depth in our EBook “Healthy Pancreas, Healthy You”.
The proper work of the smooth muscles of the sphincter of Oddi without gallbladder depends upon many factors, One of them is deficiency of vital minerals and vitamins, On the other hand, many patients with postcholecystectomy syndrome get symptomatic therapy with a variety of medications such as painkillers, antidepressants, stomach acid suppressors, sleeping pills, etc. These medications may cause whole body acidity, spasm or gaping sphincter, deficiency of the minerals, indigestion and more. For the doctor or medical practitioner who trays to help the person with SOD after gallbladder surgery, it is a difficult task to verify what is a cause of the dysfunction of the sphincter of Oddi.
SOD is a progressive condition that without proper treatment causes inflammation and scarring of this muscle valve. Blockage of the sphincter of Oddi does not happen overnight; therefore, early treatment may delay severe complications. Any bout of left or right upper abdominal pain after gallbladder removal is an alarm bell of potential spasm of the sphincter. Read our article Postcholecystectomy syndrome: pain and indigestion after gallbladder surgery to figure out the three stages of the PCS: functional, structural and failure.
In any stages of the postcholecystectomy syndrome with SOD, therapeutic actions have to be focused on:
- Making the liver bile liquid, avoiding bile’s congestion
- Creating the liver bile alkaline, reducing aggressiveness
- Promoting liver bile production and secretion
- Decreasing pain and inflammation of bile ducts, sphincter of Oddi, duodenum, and stomach
- Diminishing spasms or looseness of the sphincter of Oddi
- Lessening bile reflux
- Normalizing bile acids metabolism
- Reducing the internal toxicity
- Correcting deficiencies of the vital nutrients
- Restoring the friendly intestinal bacteria
- Decreasing the scarring and adhesions after surgery
- Improving overall digestion, and more
This can be achieved by using the Biotherapy’s healing program of the Sphincter Oddi Dysfunction following the gallbladder removal. It may include:
Drinking the healing mineral water prepared from genuine Karlovy Vary spring salt at home Customized healing, alkaline diet
Various style of the acupuncture
Herbal teas and formulas
Nutritional supplementation
Anti-Candida program European whole body cleansing with the colon hydrotherapyRestoration of friendly intestinal bacteria
Abdominal manual therapy
Relaxation, meditation, hypnosis, custom hypnosis CD’s
Practitioners of the Biotherapy Clinic have used these non-drug, alternative medicine methods to help persons with the absence of the gallbladder with SOD for more than 40 of years. Various parts of this healing program have been used by doctors and medical practitioners all over the globe as a routine treatment of the PCS.
For the individuals who want to know more or skeptics, there is much medical info in the book” Natural health before and after gallbladder removal.” Click here. This 500 pages, 300 references book describes in detail postcholecystectomy syndrome and its holistic treatment.
To obtain the benefits of the Biotherapy Clinic from healing the postcholecystectomy syndrome, reduce pain, indigestion after gallbladder removal one can select the following options:
- Telephone consultation (415) 409-3939
- Office consultation