Gallbladder Removal (Laparoscopic)

What it is

The gallbladder is a small sac tucked under the liver that stores bile, the fluid the body uses to digest fat. When gallstones form in it, they can block the outlet and cause attacks of pain. Removing the gallbladder solves the problem, and the body goes on digesting food without it. In the laparoscopic version, the surgeon makes three or four small cuts in the abdomen, inflates the belly with gas to make room, and works with a camera and long, thin instruments passed through those cuts. This code covers the straightforward version of that operation, without an X-ray study of the bile ducts done during surgery — that is billed differently.

Why it is done

• To treat gallstones that are causing attacks of pain, often in the upper right or upper middle abdomen and often after a fatty meal
• To treat an inflamed or infected gallbladder
• To stop repeated attacks in someone whose stones keep causing symptoms, along with nausea, vomiting, or indigestion

What to expect

The operation is done under general anesthesia. Most people go home the same day or the day after, once they can drink liquids and their pain is controlled with medication by mouth. Soreness at the incisions and in the shoulder — from the gas used during surgery — is common for a few days, and most people are back to normal energy within about a week. If the gallbladder turns out to be badly inflamed or scarred, the surgeon may need to convert to a single larger incision partway through; that is a different operation with a different code, a longer stay, and a different price.

Questions worth asking

• If the surgeon has to convert to an open operation, what does that do to the bill, and will I be told before it's finalized?
• Is this scheduled as same-day surgery or with an overnight stay, and is an overnight billed as observation or as an inpatient admission? The distinction can change your share of the cost substantially.
• Are the surgeon, the anesthesia group, the assistant if there is one, and the facility all in network?
• Does the quoted price include the follow-up visits, or are those billed separately?