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Gallstones Center - Wichita Falls, TX

Wichita Falls Gastroenterologist Doctors for Gallstones

Type of Physician: Gastroenterologist

What is a Gastroenterologist?

A subspecialty certification by the Board of Internal Medicine; practitioners focus on the stomach, intestines, colon, liver, and gallbladder (digestive organs). The gastroenterologist treats conditions such as abdominal pain, ulcers, diarrhea, cancer, and jaundice and they consult with surgeons when abdominal operations are indicated.

Specialty: Gastroenterology

Common Name: GI Doctor

Gastroenterologist Doctors in Wichita Falls *

Louis Wilson MD
Rick Ho
1104 Brook Ave
Wichita Falls, TX 76301
(940) 687-6870

Konappa Murthy MD
Konappa Murthy
1815 10th St
Wichita Falls, TX 76301
(940) 723-1672

Louis Wilson MD
Louis Wilson
1104 Brook Ave
Wichita Falls, TX 76301
(940) 687-6870

Joe A Dean MD
Joe A Dean
5500 Kell West St
STE 400
Wichita Falls, TX 76310
(940) 322-1888

Texas Digestive Disease Consultants
Jeffrey Smith
2010 Ben Merritt Dr
STE A
Decatur, TX 76234
(817) 424-1525

S R Boya MD
S R Boya
218 SW 26th Ave
STE C
Mineral Wells, TX 76067
(940) 328-1771

Parker County Gastroenterology
Timothy L Huggins
1212 Clear Lake Rd
STE 100
Weatherford, TX 76086
(817) 341-3300

Wichita Falls, Texas

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Gallstones

What are gallstones?

Gallstones (often misspelled gall stones, or gall stone) are stones that form in the gall (bile). (The gallbladder is a pear-shaped organ just below the liver and stores the bile secreted by the liver.)

  • Bile is a watery liquid made by the cells of the liver that is important for digesting food in the intestine, particularly fat.
  • Liver cells secrete the bile they make into small canals within the liver.
  • The bile flows through the canals and into larger collecting ducts within the liver (the intrahepatic bile ducts).
  • The bile then flows within the intrahepatic bile ducts out of the liver and into the extrahepatic bile ducts-first into the hepatic bile ducts, then into the common hepatic duct, and finally into the common bile duct.

From the common bile duct, there are two different directions that bile can flow.

  • The first direction is on down the common bile duct and into the intestine where the bile mixes with food and promotes digestion of food.
  • The second direction is into the cystic duct, and from there into the gallbladder (often misspelled as gall bladder).

Once in the gallbladder, bile is concentrated by the removal (absorption) of water. During a meal, the muscle that makes up the wall of the gallbladder contracts and squeezes the concentrated bile in the gallbladder back through the cystic duct into the common duct and then into the intestine. (Concentrated bile is much more effective for digestion than the un-concentrated bile that goes from the liver straight into the intestine.) The timing of gallbladder contraction-during a meal-allows the concentrated bile from the gallbladder to mix with food.

Gallstones usually form in the gallbladder; however, they also may form anywhere there is bile; in the intrahepatic, hepatic, common bile, and cystic ducts.

Gallst...

Recommended Reading Related to Gallstones

Obesity »

Obesity facts

  • Obesity means having excess body fat. For adults 35 and older, having a BMI greater than 30 is considered obese.
  • Obesity is not just a cosmetic consideration. It is a chronic medical disease that can lead to diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, gallstones, and other chronic illnesses.
  • Obesity is difficult to treat and has a high relapse rate. Greater than 95% of those who lose weight regain the weight within five years.
  • Even though medications and diets can help, the treatment of obesity cannot be a short-term "fix" but has to be a life-long commitment to proper diet habits, increased physical activity, and regular exercise.
  • The goal of treatment should be to achieve and maintain a "healthier weight," not necessarily an ideal weight.
  • Even a modest weight loss of 5%-10% of initial weight and the long-term maintenance of that weight loss can bring significant health benefits ...

Emergency Contact for Wichita Falls

  • In case of Emergency, call 911

Nearby Wichita Falls Hospitals *

Red River Hospital & Behavioral Health Services
1505 Eighth St
Wichita Falls, TX 76301
(940)322-3171

Texas Specialty Hospital Wichita Falls
1103 Grace St
Wichita Falls, TX 76301
(940)720-6633

United Regional Health Care System
1600 11th St
Wichita Falls, TX 76301
(940)764-7000

HEALTHSOUTH Wichita Falls Rehabilitation Hospital
3901 Armory Rd
Wichita Falls, TX 76302
(940)720-5700

North Texas State Hospital Wichita Falls Campus
6515 Kemp Blvd
Wichita Falls, TX 76308
(940)692-1220

Kell West Regional Hospital
5420 Kell West Blvd
Wichita Falls, TX 76310
(940)692-5888

Clay County Memorial Hospital
310 W South St
Henrietta, TX 76365
(940)538-5621

Electra Memorial Hospital
1207 S Bailey St
Electra, TX 76360
(940)495-3981

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