Suspected cholelithiasis when the pain in the solar plexus is repeated as if he had indigestion after eating...causes of obesity, diet, etc

Apr 11, 2025

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Most of the cases where you feel stuffy or pain that seems to be pressing hard on your solar plexus or right upper abdomen after eating are caused by indigestion, but if it continues to be repeated, you should suspect cholelithiasis.

The gallbladder is located in the right upper abdomen in the shape of a small pocket, and the gallbladder is responsible for storing and secreting bile made in the liver that helps digest fat. In the gallbladder, bile stagnates due to decreased function of the gallbladder, and when the cholesterol content of bile acid increases, it forms crystals and hardens like stones to become gallstones. When gallstones block the opening of the gallbladder, this causes pain, which is called cholelithiasis.

There are several causes of cholelithiasis. In typical cases, obesity or high-fat eating habits can be the cause, but on the contrary, fasting or sudden weight loss due to excessive diet are also risk factors. In addition, taking female hormone drugs can inhibit the contraction function of the gallbladder, causing cholelithiasis, and genetic factors and systemic diseases such as diabetes and Crohn's disease are also considered factors.

Typical symptoms of cholelithiasis are squeezing pain and frustration in the solar plexus and right upper abdomen after meals or early in the morning, and the symptoms are enlarged to the back or right scapula. It is common to last about 20 to 30 minutes when symptoms occur, and it is often repeated once symptoms occur.

In the case of cholelithiasis treatment, gallstones were found in the gallbladder, but if there are no symptoms, it is okay to observe the course. However, if symptoms occur, two-thirds of patients will develop and repeat symptoms again, and complications of acute cholecystitis are likely to occur, so fundamental treatment through laparoscopic cholecystectomy is necessary. Dissolution therapy through drugs or stone-breaking lithotripsy therapy are currently not recommended unless it is difficult to see great effects and surgery is impossible because it is difficult to remove completely.

"The incidence of gallstones due to changes in western eating habits or diets is not small," said Kim Jin-min, head of the surgery department at Busan Good Samsun Hospital. "If repeated pain persists, it is necessary to visit a hospital for examination and treatment."