Digestion · 4 min read · 2026-01-16

Gallstone pain: the wave under the right ribs

A stone can sit quietly for years. The night it blocks the duct, the pain is not a gas tablet problem.

This page is general education for families in Gurugram. It is not a diagnosis, a medicine list, or a reason to skip a clinician. Doses are deliberately not given.

In plain language

The gallbladder stores bile and squeezes it out after a fatty meal. A stone that lodges in the outlet causes a steady, severe pain under the right ribs, often into the back or shoulder, with nausea. It builds over minutes and can last hours. Fever, yellow eyes, or pain that does not settle means infection or a blocked duct and needs urgent care.

Signs worth noticing

These are the clues families usually notice first. One of them, on its own, is not a diagnosis.

Waves of severe right-sided upper abdominal pain after a heavy meal.
Vomiting with the pain.
Pain that ends, leaving you exhausted but well.
Yellow eyes, dark urine, pale stools, or fever with the pain.

What usually sits underneath

Stones form from bile that is thick with cholesterol, from the gallbladder not emptying, and from other risks including some blood disorders and rapid weight loss. Oily food is the trigger, not the sole cause.

Care that is reasonable at home

If you have known stones and no symptoms, ask whether anything needs doing. Many silent stones are watched.
Avoid the specific heavy meals that you already know are a trigger, while you wait to be seen.
Do not start a ‘stone dissolving’ oil from a reel.
Come the same day if a severe attack is new.

These steps are for someone who is otherwise stable. If the picture is changing quickly, skip the home trial and come in.

When waiting is a bad idea

Pain lasting more than a few hours, or with fever.
Yellowing of the eyes, or repeated vomiting.
Collapse or a rigid, silent abdomen.

How Rao Lokram Charitable Trust fits in

We can examine you, arrange the ultrasound when it is the right test, and decide between watchful waiting and a surgical opinion. OPD runs Monday to Sunday, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM at Near Rockford School, Anaj Mandi Chowk, Kadipur Road, Shakti Park, Sector 10A, Gurugram, Haryana. Call 98185 48492 or 70423 28047. There is no appointment form on this website.

Questions people ask

Does everyone with stones need surgery?

No. Silent stones often stay. Stones that have caused typical attacks usually need a plan to remove the gallbladder, because attacks repeat.

Can I flush the stones?

No. Olive oil flushes do not safely pass gallstones and can trigger a bad attack.

Is the pain always on the right?

Usually. Sometimes it sits in the middle. Heart pain can also sit in the upper abdomen. Sweat and exertion still matter.

If this sounds like you, bring the article on your phone if you want, but let the clinician examine you. Old reports and a list of current medicines make the visit shorter.