Symptoms · After gallbladder surgery
Loose stools or bloating after gallbladder surgery
The short answer
Loose stools or bloating, especially after fatty meals, are common after the gallbladder is removed. The liver still makes bile, but it flows straight into the bowel instead of being stored. This usually improves within 3–6 months. See your doctor if it is severe, lasts longer than that, or comes with fever, blood in the stool, weight loss or pain. Go to the emergency room for severe belly pain, fever with yellow eyes or skin, or signs of dehydration.
How patients describe it
- Loose stools after I eat
- Diarrhoea after the gallbladder operation
- Bloating and gas after fatty food
- Urgent trips to the toilet after meals
- Mild upper belly discomfort
Go to the emergency room now if you have
- Severe belly pain, or fever with yellow eyes or skin
- Black stools, or blood in the stool
- Dizziness, a very dry mouth, or passing very little urine (dehydration)
- Repeated vomiting
- Diarrhoea that wakes you at night, or that lasts beyond 3–6 months
What can cause it
Bile flowing straight into the bowel
Loose stools or mild diarrhoea, mostly after fatty meals, in about 5–10 in 100 people. It usually improves within 3–6 months.
Next step: Diet changes; a medicine that binds bile if it persists.
Large fatty meals or other triggers
Bloating and gas, in about 10–20 in 100 people, especially after fatty food.
Next step: Smaller, lower-fat meals; a food diary.
A stomach infection or antibiotics
Watery diarrhoea, sometimes with fever or after taking antibiotics.
Next step: See a doctor; stool tests.
A stone left behind or a bile duct problem
Pain in the upper right belly, yellow eyes or skin, dark urine or fever (post-cholecystectomy syndrome).
Next step: See a doctor soon; ultrasound and blood tests.
What you can do now
- Eat small, lower-fat meals, and add fat back slowly
- Add fibre gradually; soluble fibre, such as oats, can firm the stool
- Drink plenty of fluids
- Limit caffeine, alcohol and very spicy food
- Keep a food diary, and ask your doctor about a medicine that binds bile if it continues
Tests your doctor may order
- A review and examination by your doctor
- Stool tests and blood tests if needed
- Ultrasound if you have pain or yellow skin, and rarely camera tests
When is surgery needed?
- No operation is needed for loose stools. The treatment is diet and, if needed, medicines.
- A further procedure is considered only for a stone left behind or a bile duct problem.
Related operation guides
Questions people ask
Will it get better?
Usually yes. Loose stools and bloating mostly improve within 3–6 months.
Can I eat fatty food again?
Yes, but add it back slowly and in small amounts, and see how your bowel reacts.
Is the gallbladder needed?
Your liver keeps making bile, and your body adapts fully with time, so you do not need the gallbladder.
This page gives general information and does not replace the advice of your treating team. In an emergency, go to the nearest emergency room.