4:30 PM

We are back.  They took a look and there is no sign of an obstruction in the intestine below the j-tube. (Duh, I could have told them that.)  But after expressing my concern Dr. Savoka decided to let a little water out of the balloon.  He said the other thing to look for was to insert an NG tube again and do a test to see if fluid can leave the stomach or if there is some paresis going on.  But that will mean writing another order and making a return trip. Mikie got the hiccups again after we moved him from the table back to his chair and he still has them now.  He’s been doing a lot of that lately.

Here’s a question I have for someone smarter than me.  What is it that triggers bile to be released from the gall bladder?  It would seem that food would have to enter the duodenum and then the bile would be released, and I may have read somewhere that is what takes place.  So why is bile making the trip back into the stomach, instead of traveling on its way towards the jejunum? Wouldn’t it make sense that the system is waiting for food to be introduced?  And maybe the system is confused when it enters two foot away from the expected entry point?  Its got me puzzled, let’s hope that reducing the size of the balloon did the trick.