These posts are written to build on each other. Start at Part 1 of a series and read forward; each one is meant to stand on its own as a teaching primer for students, residents, and curious patients.
A ground-up tour of the gallbladder and biliary tree: the anatomy first, then how it works, then what goes wrong. Written to build on itself, so it reads best in order.
An estimated 20 million Americans have gallstones. Before we talk about how gallbladder surgery is done, here is a tour of the gallbladder and the biliary tree, the foundation for everything else in this series.
→ 02GallbladderYour liver makes bile around the clock, but your gallbladder only releases it when you eat. Here is the hormone that triggers the squeeze — CCK — and why that pathway matters clinically.
→ 03GallbladderMost gallstones are cholesterol stones that form when bile tips out of balance. Here is how a crystal becomes sludge and then a stone, who is at higher risk, and why most people never know they have them.
→More parts are on the way. New posts publish about once a week.
A careful read of the evidence on robotic versus laparoscopic gallbladder removal, elective and emergency, ending with where Dr. Rodriguez lands in his own practice.
More than 750,000 cholecystectomies are done in the US each year, yet surgeons do not agree on whether to use the robot. Part 1 of a three-part series weighs the elective evidence, cost included.
→ 02Robotic SurgeryPart 2 turns to the emergency gallbladder: inflamed, swollen, and distorted. The robotic vs. laparoscopic evidence in acute cholecystectomy is entirely observational and genuinely split, and here is how to read it.
→More parts are on the way. New posts publish about once a week.
Shorter standalone posts that pair well with the series above.
June 20, 2026
A short video walkthrough of biliary anatomy and physiology -- useful background if you're trying to understand gallstones, gallbladder removal, or why these symptoms happen in the first place.
Read more →June 15, 2026
Ozempic, Wegovy, and similar medications can raise your risk of gallstones. Here's what that means and when to get checked.
Read more →June 8, 2026
It's the single biggest safeguard against bile duct injury during gallbladder removal — here's what it actually means.
Read more →