Gastritis and Lap Band...HELP

Hi everyone!  I usually post on the RNY board (my surgery is scheduled for 3/5) but my question today is regarding the lapband for my sister.   She had the lapband placed about 4 months ago and shortly after started having trouble with her stomach.  Long story short....she was just diagnosed with gastritis (stomach inflammation) and was told to take carafate.  The GI doctor isn't a big fan of the band and has told her NOT to inflate the band because it would make things worse (she has yet to have a fill!!!!!!).  *She had her band placed in Tjuana* So do any of you have experience with stomach issues and have the lapband?  If her stomach is inflammed and she should watch her diet, etc., wouldn't it be good to have the band restrict what she can eat?? Any advice and/or comments would be greatly appreciated! Jen

I'm no doctor...but I'd be very concerned about leaving the band in. She can't fill it...rendering it useless, and it's causing or aggrevating her gastritis. She needs to speak to a reputable, experienced bariatric surgeon in my opinion.

Until her stomach inflammation clears up, she probably should not try to get a fill. Gastritis can cause swelling in the lining of the stomach and the amount of swelling could potentially vary from day to day. If she were to get a fill that felt OK one day, a couple days later she might end up too tight due to the swelling OR she could end up further irritating her stomach. With gastritis I don't think they so much want you to watch the quantity you eat as avoid eating irritants. Once she gets the all clear that the gastritis has cleared up, she should be able to proceed with fills. Other people on this board have had gastritis I think, so you might get some more helpful advice! Also, does she have a band doc here in the US yet? if not, she needs to find one - her band doc can help her with the gastritis issue AND help her determine when/if to get a fill.

Hello,

When you mentioned that she was banded in Tjuana Mexico, are you sure she is getting adeqate aftercare? There are MANY folks who get banded in Mexico and cannot find regular aftercare and therefore have more problems than those who get banded locally.

That said, I don't think gastritis would inhibit her from getting her needed fills, but she do need to have a experienced LOCAL BAND SURGEON look at her band with a Upper GI to make sure the position of her band is correct, sometimes if the band is too tight this can cause severe irritation and WILL cause gastritis, esophagus problems and other issues if someone cannot get the needed unfill immediately and proper medication, I think the carafate is good, but she probably needs to HEAL first before she thinks of getting another fill and let a local band surgeon monitor her.

N.

I think she needs to find a new GI doctor - one who isn't so judgemental.  Does she know WHY she has the gastritis?  Because all the word "gastritis" is, is a description of her symptoms, not the cause of them.  That would be the first step - finding out why it happened, then you can move forward with treatment from there.

My advice is to find a band friendly GI doctor first.  Bias is bias.

Anytime a person is having trouble I'd reccomend getting a second opinion.  Again, bias is bias, and a surgeon is more likely to want to defend his or her work.

Not even going to go there with the TJ thing.  Oh wait, yeah I am.  Many of the surgeons in TJ have been doing lapband for far longer than the US surgeons.  But, it is important to have a local dr. for aftercare unless you can afford to fly down to TJ for tests, etc.  It's a function of distance, though, not skill.

I would like to see our US healthcare system make affordable surgery options for a lot of surgeries, but until that happens, surgical tourism is going to be big business.

I was diagnosed with gastritis 2 yrs ago--the difference is I've had my band 4 yrs and the problem started when my fill level increased to its highest. She should NOT have gastritis immediately post op. She should be seen by a bariatric dr who will do an endo and upper GI to look for placement problems, infection or other problems. It will be an uphill battle finding a surgeon who will see her in this country.

Thank you everyone!

I had gastritis about 4 months after being banded.  I was ordered liquids for two weeks and to stay away from food/drink that were stomach irritants.  Typical food irritants are the same as for GERD like tomatoes, lemonade, all citus, etc. Good luck to your sister and tell her to get another opinion about her diagnosis.  It should go away on its own I think.

Jen I just want to wish you the best with your surgery.  It takes a lot of courage to have WLS no matter what kind you get so best wishes for a safe and speedy recovery.  I agree with the posts before mine, she needs an band friendly surgeon to explore her options.  Good luck to both of you,