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Elevated Amylase and Lipase, enlarged bile duct and abd pain

Three years ago I came down with severe abd pain, mid section and into my back when very severe; I also had diarrhea. I was told I had the flu and then after two weeks they admitted me into the hospital and found out that my amylase and lipase was elevated. They starved me for three days, giving me morphine to heal me. During this time I also had a ultrasound which showed an enlarged bile duct.
I was told to eat a low fat diet and referred to a gastroenterologist.The gastroenterologist asked me to get blood tests the next time it happened and stick with the low fat diet. Within in those year I have had a few mild attacks, which I can manage and just stop eating such fatty food for a bit. I have had those lab tests, HIDA Scan and MRI the gastroenterologist ordered but all came back normal.
Recently I had another attack and consult my pcp again. He ordered an ultrasound, which showed an enlarged bile duct and some thickening of the gall bladder. he then asked me to do another HIDA scan, as I was currently having pain. I did, and everything came back normal. I should note that the 2-3 times I have had this midsection pain, I can go into the dr and get an amylase test and it is elevated slightly.
A week later I still have some pain, this pain I can deal with but my question is: what the H*** is wrong with me? and is it something I should be concerned about? If I really just have to eat low fat foods the rest of my life and I will be fine, I am ok with that. I am just starting to get concerned that this may be something more serious. I can definitely try and go back to the gastroenterologist, but it is a two hour drive. Any suggestions?
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Avatar universal
Hi Sassy!,If u have that much mid pain,going from just under ribcage,nto your back wall,and elevated amalayse level,you more than likely have Chronic Panceatitis! Becoming Acute at times,ABSOLUTE AGONY,And Upset Tummy.This ALL POINTS TO PANCREATITIS.You May have GALLSTONES,Getting "STUCK" in the PANCREATIC DUCT.This can CAUSE WEIGHT LOSS as Yor Pancreas Controls the absorbtion of CALORIES.FATS VITAMINS,MINERALS ETC ETC.I was left TOO LONG with 241 Gallstones EVENTUALLY REMOVED! I am now Allergic to ALCOHOL,One SI could KILL ME,So PLEASE STEER CLEAR OF ALCOHOL! Your GP Should have told you this as soon as they saw you had "ABDO." Pain,AND RAISED AMALAYSE LEVEL.PANCREATITIS KILLS,SO PLEASE PUSH YOUR DR HARDER IN GETTING THIS PROBLEM SORTED.If you need an further help,just pm me and ill reply.I feel so sorry for you hun,you must be worried,Take care,Luv Sarah,xxx
Helpful - 0
338985 tn?1304314202
You poor thing. I feel your pain. I live in Australia and have the same problems as yours and boy o boy they too are mucking me round here and I am like a ping pong ball back and forwards to the GI Surgeon 4 hours away and he keeps telling me to go home and there is nothing they can do and to take pain relief. I found out the other day with a CT Scan i have a tumour in my CBD...so now im back down to the surgeon again.
Ok with you, listening to what you have said sounds like you could have GallBladder/Pancreatitis problems. If your Am lipase is elevated that is suspect of pancreatitis or gallbladder issues. I have chronic pancreatitis and get Acute pancreatitis in between and it is sooooo painful i end up in the Acc and Emergency...so if you are having terrible pain like that too..I believe you need them to do what is called ERCP...where they put a camera down your throat and has a look at your pancreas/cbd/gallbladder etc and if there is anything they can either remove it or take biopsies of anything they see...if anything is seen.
If there is enlarged bile duct there is a reason for that and it could be that you may have a prob with your gallbladder or your pancreas, and you know just a ultrasound wont pick everything up.They should know that. There is also a test done called an MRCP...they do them in Aussie not sure about where you live and its like an CT Scan only twice as better and they can see everything.
Im a firm believer in if you have pain there is something wrong and the Dr needs to look into it proparly,but you know they dont always do. I mean look at me...they said o you will be ok you have pancreatitis, just take pain relief and i asked about my diet and they said.>>>Wait for it.....Has nothing to do with it....Im afraid it does....from what i have learnt....
Anyhow since all this I have found something that has really helped the pain and the nausea and i never thought it would....Probiotics...they are brilliant and for people who are lactose intolerant there are Dairy Free Probiotics...They are called "INNER HEALTH PLUS" ask your chemist and if your ok to try it, then give it a whirl because i am so glad i did. Also dont give up ok...stay on these Drs feet and never give up...if i had of given up then the tumour would not of been found....I am hoping the surgeon will do another ERCP because my Dr has ordered anothr one..but the surgeon said No matter what is found he wont be doing another one...well this has been found and Legally he wouldnt want to leave it.
I know the pain and stress you feel and my heart goes out to you very much. Never let these Drs say there is nothing wrong with you because there is, they are terrible in this Dept, honestly the amount of people in the world who have pancreatitis and a blown off as drug seekers discusts me. These people are in ligit pain and sufferieng and for a Dr to say they are making it up is a further insult to them. Good Luck ok and if you need someone to talk to about this...feel free to contact me any time because I am going through the same as you....I do care and I do understand. I am going through the stress now of maybe there is nothing there in my cbd and before it was maybe there is somthing there....since been diagnoised with a tumor...but hey now im hoping it will be nothing and will be removed...but no guantee of that in my country and the way i have been treated is appauling... I have terrible stomach pain off and on and have to deal with it head on but it helps when someone is there for you and understands...makes it a little better.
Let me know how you go. If you have private health or that..I would be telling the GI surgeon to GIVE you an ERCP so you can rule things out. Good luck and keep me posted ok ...
Annemarie
Helpful - 0
1674610 tn?1317002220
I have changed my diet it's been two years now! I think changing a diet is okay, but it is not the win all for the hold problem.

I wounder why the Doctors hesitate to just invasively treat this problem. I am an Artist, and I take things apart in my mind to paint them together again. I feel if a dootor is confident in their skills, they would explore this a little more aggressively then they do! It feels like they just guess at what they think after asking many questions, do a couple Gi treatments to explore, a little blood work and that's it!

They have to fight the insurance companies to order an MRI for their own Patients. What kind of system uses a doctors advice but go against his own treatment suggestion, and bargains with their patients health to treat us fully, with that doctors desire to do so!

I am so sick of the run around. This is why pancreas cancer is hardest to find, because they won't give our doctors liberties to treat us, because of money. Humanity is out the window. They will save a jail bird over a good citizen paying into the health care or not. With all the famous people who recently suffered from this illness there should have been enough mone there to find a way to at least get to the earlier stages of the issues. I had everything you had sassybabe77 and still suffering. Don't eat meat harly, maybe fish, little chicken. Dairy is out, so drink soy, no sodas, eating more raw vestgtables. Drink a lot of water? With this problem with the pancreas diet helps, but it's not all that is needed of treatment.

My mother went back and forward to the doctor, and they said she was a hypocondreact because they couldn't justify her complaint with a diagnose. She got jaundice , then lost weight all within a month of them calling her that. Then they tried to say she had hypotytise, or kendy decease, they realized after she got dyaria and blood in her stool, they finally did surgery. Bam! Big as day, cancer, and it had been there so long that it spread through out her body by the time they did something to find it. Hypochondria my butt! It's call incompetent  diagnoses, by a unlearned doctor who lable their paiteints as the problem.  Really one reason is because of their inability to treat her properly.

Now I am enough warning of the same beginning stages, no cancer though, at least not yet anyway.  They don't really know  one way or another because all I get is the run around. These procedures that they are doing now to treat pancreaus issues are very floturant,  and ignorance to know better, unfortunately we patients are the ones to suffer!
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Avatar universal
Have you changed your diet? If I eat low fat foods I don't have a problem. I just worry that, even if there's not pain, is there something still wrong in there?
Helpful - 0
1674610 tn?1317002220
It's litke you were telling my story! May God to the "T" i had pain in my chest to start out, then months later to my right side, then my mid section, now it's in my frint center abdomin and dirrectly same center in the back while radiating aroud my right side so i can't harley tell which place it is coming from! had er cat skans, xrays, doing a MRI this coming week, and I am scared because my GI doctor said that this is puzzling him. If after all the years of him dealing with people with indocrine issues he can say to me that he's puzzled i feel that he is some what incompotent to deal with my issue! what are we to do! this is the first time I am hearing about ny bile ducts, they never een brought that up! but i have been feeling bloated and not going like I should. one day I thought that I ws going to bust so got laxative, and it didn't work. I was so scared at that point. then I drank some milk and ate yogurt whch i am lactose intolerant helped out alot and my pancrease stopped hurting too. it was relief for both to go! i wounder if this bile duct problem is happening to me too! Much more to say but tird and sleepy. another symptem, I am tired all the time, low energy!
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
It's possible that you are experiencing gallbladder issues that may be affecting your pancreas. Problems with the gallbladder can lead to sludge/stone formation that - during passage - can cause spasms of the common bile duct, or it's possible to have spasms without the presence of stones/sludge. Either way, if the CBD closes down in any manner, it may cause enlargement of the duct over time.

If the duct spasms/closes, the contents of the CBD can back-up into the pancreas causing an inflammatory process to start and result in low-level pancreatitis and an elevation in pancreatic enzymes such as amylase.

Try sticking with and following a low-fat diet long-term. But this is something you should fully discuss with your doctor. You don't want to end up with acute attacks of pancreatitis that lead to long-term pancreatitis and damage to your pancreas.
Helpful - 0
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