Eat Dirt

While on my general surgery rotation, I have seen several cholecystectomies (surgery to remove the gallbladder). Acknowledging that I wasn't all too sure what a gallbladder was before medschool, I am not surprised when patients who come in with abdominal pain are themselves surprised that it is due to an organ who's very existence was unknown to them. One such man came into the emergency department recently, and it was determined that he needed his gallbladder removed. The next morning the patient asked what had caused his pain that had resulted in a need for surgery. "Stones," one resident said. "You mean like dirt?" the patient replied incredulously. "Yes", said the resident. In the hallway, another student and I quickly discussed the absurdity of someone being told that they had dirt in an organ they had never heard of before, but "don't worry, it's been removed". My classmate later went back to clarify to the patient that gallstones are in fact NOT made of dirt but rather of cholesterol and bile. I'm going to attribute the resident's inaccurate response to a misunderstanding of the patient, but can only imagine the patient having been left to wonder just how exactly he had gotten all of that dirt inside of him.