A week or so ago, I posted a question for anyone who might have had blood in their stool following lap RNY.  Well I had it and it continued for approximately 6 days.  It started on 12/11, I called the office and they said to watch it and call if it persists or gets worse.  The next day it continued, I called my doctor and he sent me for blood work.  I still felt fine and didn't get my bloodwor****il after the weekend.  On Monday morning the blood in the stool persisted, I still felt fine.  I called my surgeon and they told me that my hemoglobin level was not much different then when I went in for my RNY surgery.  The nurse told me that she would speak to my surgeon and the next day would call me.  Like clockwork, she called me in the morning and told me that as long as I felt ok, I should see if it continues or stops and if it persists past Christmas, I should call back or, of course, call back if I felt worse.  So Wednesday night, it happens again, twice, and I feel awful.  A little lightheaded, really just totally shot.  I called the surgeon and they tell me to come in for blood work and to be seen first thing in the morning.  The next morning I go in and my hemoglobin is now low and I feel terrible.  Despite my size, I am a very active person and I was exhausted from just walking to the mailbox that morning.  So I was admitted to the hospital and started on IV fluids.  I also went back to clears.  I also was given 2 units of blood and started on some medicine for my stomach, Protonix and Sucralfate.  The next day I was given an endoscopy and a sigmoidoscopy which determined that I had an anastomotic ulcer.  The ulcer, at that point, was not bleeding but my surgeon feels that it was the cause of my bleeding.  Following my procedures, I received 2 more units of blood to bring my hemoglobin up.  It came up and stayed up, so I got to go home on Saturday night.  So far, since I've been home I've been doing ok.  Feeling tired easily but much better than I was.  I had a little residual blood in my stool last night and the doctor said I should expect that. 

So after that long post....has anyone else ever experienced this?  My surgeon says its just a little bump in the road and I hope that is the case.  I've lost 53lbs as of last Thursday and have been adjusting well to my new way of living. 

Thank you.

Dr. Davis isn't famous, he's just on TV.

IMO, a good sugeon doesn't mangle up his practice with TV cameras.  Their practice has grown because people assume that because they are on TV, they are famous or good.

I saw Dr. Garth Davis in April of 2006.  He is the bariatric surgeon I mentioned met with me after a phone call from my WLS in Louisiana, and not only misdiagnosed me which could have led to my death but literally, when I asked about how we would control pain until we found an answer, said to me,
 
"Mrs. X, there is nothing wrong with you.  You need to go home and get over yourself." 

Good thing I didn't listen to him.  I'd be dead.

Thank you for your kind words.

With all the recent posts on severe complications and even reversals, I thought I should post this as a new thread even though I have shared it as a reply in a post below.


Here is a synopsis of my history:

Starting weight 252 /   Current  140

RNY 11/03/04;

GB removal 12/04/04;

Plastic Surgery  06/14/05;

Internal Hernia/Adhesions 06/06/06; (exploratory surgery / eating very little / mostly liquids)

Plastic Surgery 07/15/06;

Partial Bowel Obstruction 11/12/06; (exploratory surgery - had been unable to eat)

Full Obstruction/Kink - complication from surgery 2 days prior / ICU blood transfusions and to stabilize 11/14/06;   (I was in New Orleans for this surgery and not allowed to return home to Texas for a month to ensure blood loss had stopped and I was stable.)

Emergency Surgery for Obstruction 100% Shut down/ 24 hours from perforation/ Adhesions/Vertical Open 9 in. 07/19/07;

Infection from above surgery / ER Admit/Unstable/Erratic HR & BP/Ambulatory transfer / inpatient ICU until stable/ 07/30/07;

SBBO 08/27/07;

Hernia Repair (3) and Lysis Adhesions that had been causing significant pain, unable to eat, and partial obstruction as well 04/01/08;

Wound infection in patient ICU to clear and stabilize/ admitted 04/22/08;

Hernia Repair with Mesh 09/19/2008 / stayed in New Orleans for 5 days after discharge.

ER admission for Infection & Internal Bleeding/ICU with transfusion 09/30/2008 (had I gone to sleep that night, I would not have survived).

Additional complications:  numerous emergency room visits for pain, nausea, vomiting, dehydration, etc. with no resolution, peripheral neuropathy, pernicious anemia, severe dehydration, severe constipation, reactive hypoglycemia, only able to consume liquid food sources, severe IBS, parasites, confusion, loss of memory - short and long tern, loss of balance, loss of vocabulary, tingling in extremities resulting in partial paralysis which was related to malnutrition  and difficulty keeping vitamins levels in normal ranges, lost too much weight and struggled to gain to healthy weight, ............and who else knows what I can't remember......

Notes for those suffering from "unexplained pain:"

Only ONE (1) time did a bowel obstruction appear on a CT Scan -- that was in November of 2006 after I had surgery for a partial bowel obstruction -- it was a complication to a partial bowel obstruction repair found through exploratory surgery. 

It's simply not true that an obstruction (particularly partial) will show up on a CT scan or any other testing for that matter.  I am proof.

I don't know what advice to give anyone other than to be your own very strong and determined advocate.  No one knows your body like you do.  If any pain worsens, go to the ER.  Demand a consult with a bariatric surgeon.  I have, however, done all of these things where I live (had to relocate to Houston after Hurricane Katrina) and *I* have had to educate the doctors such as PCPs, Gastros, etc. in bariatrics. 

I am so sorry you have had to deal with all of these complications.  I understand that pain and complications such as this is debilitating and affects one's entire life and the lives of those around them. 

My surgeon has now discussed "REVERSAL" with me three times.  I keep holding out hoping that we can find a way to overcome these things (some we have and some are a daily struggle but that are helping with using creative ways to keep vitamin levels within a decent range.  The reversal is not out of question; however, with each surgery, it appears that I develop more complications and the reversal is such a major surgery (more so than the original) that it is highly unchartered waters and does not promise me complete resolution.  In fact, things could get worse.  It's not an easy decision.  As I read your synopsis, I'm not certain how much the reversal has helped you and this is what scares me.  I don't want to get worse and/or subject myself to yet another surgery as I never have time to fully recover from any of them.  I have had 12 surgeries in 4 years (2 plastic which were elective).  That's an average of 3 surgeries a year or every four months.  Between all of the anesthesia and medication I have been on, my body has never had to time to purge of medication and properly heal.  I keep hoping I can get through 18 months to fully recover from a surgery but I can't seem to make it.    I'm now 3 months from my last surgery and I am having a very difficult time adjusting to the mesh and still have extreme abdominal pain.  It takes pain medication in extremely high dosages to even take the edge off of the pain and it has been very difficult if not impossible to find a pain management specialist who understands and will prescribe what it takes to make my life more normal.   I was on the Fentanyl Patch for a while and it was a God-send but my current PMS has stopped prescribing this altogether -- what I am taking now is not helping.  I am trying to find a new PMS but this has not been easy.  No one wants to take me in.  I'm like the rat specimen/study that has gone totally wrong and no one wants the liability. 

To make the entire situation worse, as I briefly mentioned earlier, I moved to Houston just over three years ago and none of the bariatric surgeons here will take me on as a patient.  I have contacted them ALL including the teaching institutes.  I was able to see one bariatric surgeon early on (well after nearly 7 months of pain, 5 doctors, and over $100,000.00 in testing) as my WLS from LA made a personal phone call to a bariatric surgeon with whom he attended medical school and agreed to see me as a favor.  I went down with all my labs and films and he told me it was all in my head.  His misdiagnosis nearly killed me.  I live in the medical Mecca of the south and I can't find adequate care.  Unbelievable!!!!!

I don't know how much this has helped you.  I will send you a friends request so that you can read additional information on what I have been through. 

I have tried to keep the main points and thoughts in order but I haven't been able to give my FULL, UNDIVIDED attention to typing this so I don't know how well I did.  I am, of course, happy to continue communicating with you in the future.  Perhaps we can help and support one another.

I am so sorry that all of you have had so many complications.  I wish and pray for all of us to have health and happiness.

I'm so sorry for your pain.  Believe me I understand.  I had so many complications.  And they tookk a long time to diagnose the problem.  But that was previously.  Now I'm going through similar pains, but a different time, and now I have no insurance.  Thats why I have let this go on for so long.   Well since the last post, I went back to the hospital through emergency where my original surgeons operate.  Well, they actually took care of me, did the test, diagnosed a "intestinal hernia" .   They operated me the next day (laporascopically).  I f I would have gone back to the other hospital, I would have never had the same care.  It's just very complcated.  I got discahrge yesterday.  And obviously the fixed the problem.   They saidt that from the weight loss, the intestines throgh time move down and mine wrapped around and hit each other and formed a hernia.  Thats besides those the complications that I had at the begining of surgery.  A totally different complication

Anyway thank you for writing back, and remember that the doctor does make the difference.  Yo u need to see the best doctors.  Go and make a show at the emergency room of where you know the best doctor are and they have to treat you if you are post op.

Hi.  I've had ovarian cysts and my daughter as well, and ours were both right at belly button area.  Either way, you need to get those taken care of, and be your best advocate.  Tell the doc that while he's in there or whatever, why not check out everything to be safe.  Do you have any other symptoms, like constipation that could lean towards an obstruction?  Keep a journal of everything and how it effected you for a day and then talk to your doc about it.  If all else, find a new doc.  Also, is this dr. experienced in WLS patients at all?

Just some thoughts.  I hope your feeling better soon.