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Our slip rate is 1.7%.  Sometimes it just happens, sometimes it's from not following the rules.  My guess is that it's about 50/50.

Can a lap band be too high?  I was banded one year ago and have had a lot of problems with vomiting.  I eat very slowly and chew, chew , chew.   As I start to tighten the band, I begin throwing up.  I have had an upper GI and endoscope, both of which showed the band was very high and I essentially have NO pouch.  Would lowering the band help?  I am very frustrated. My BMI is too low to qualify to revise to another type of surgery.  I would appreciate any advice you can offer.

Thanks,
Susan

Yes I think some bands can be too high.  It's not always placed that way at first, I think sometimes they migrate north.  In my experience it's difficult to "make" and band sit lower than it wants to sit.

 have been unfilled since January 20, 2009 - over two months now.

I have gained 13 pounds since then and I am still unfilled.

I went in today, thinking everything would be okay for a fill and my picture on the x-ray still shows my pouch being a bulging "circle" rather than the NORM, which resembles a banana.

This issue has been on and off for almost a year.  I am so frustrated.  My surgeon is saying that I need to have revision surgery (without even seeing me, I might add), but that doesn't diagnose the underlying problem and about what is going on.

My EGD after a year, showed that I had esophogeal (sp?) ulcers and it seemed like for onty a fleeting moment that I had found the "sweet spot", losing the bulk of my weigh the first 6 months after surgery.

I am so frustrated by this that I just want to give up.   I am thinking that I should go to another surgeon to get a 2nd opinion.  Any thoughts?   Does any of this sound normal or at least something that you have heard before?

 

Yes, it sounds like garden variety pouch dilation.  We treat this by completely taking down the first operation, removing and replacing the band, and redoing it.  Also exploring for a hiatal hernia, which is almost always present in these cases.

Hello Dr C.I I am glad that you are here to answer questions.   I was banded on 11/16/06. I had a leak from the port on my 2^nd fill after having the surgery. It was determined that I had port from the very beginning. It did not help the situation that from the very beginning I had enormous amounts of mucous I would either have to pass or come up once I ate something that my esophagus could not hold.   2 years later and a new Dr who finally listened to me, that approximately 90 percent of the time when I ate anything I felt like I was being cut from the inside from the moment I swallowed food all the way in to made it in the pouch.    I was sent to an ENT DR who ruled out sinus issues, he said the cause was GERD. I was sent to barium a swallow and it was determined that I have a hernia and a weak esophagus. The radiologist recommended that I maybe have the band removed and chose one of the gastric by pass options. My question is if the hernia is repaired can  I still have the band with a weak esophagus or is the gastric the only way to achieve weight loss? I have managed to gain and regain at least 60 lbs in the last two years but I can’t manage to have the band filled because the more the band is full the more pain I have. I am so discouraged at this point but I need help to lose weight. Any idea’s Dr. C

Hello Dr. C, I was banded 09/07, I have lost 100lbs to date and need to lose another 40. I had an X-ray done yesterday and I have developed a small pouch on the top of my band. My docotor is not sure entirely why but we think it is because of my sometimes eating to fast and vomiting afterwards. this only began about 6 months ago , I had  a small de-fill  in December. My band now needs to be repositioned. My question is can that be done without defilling the band ? and if not can the band be refilled during the repositiong surgery? I was a little shocked at the time of the X-ray so I couldn't think of what questions I should ask. Thankyou so much, Sherry

I would probably unfill the band if you are having any vomiting issues prior to revision, and I would leave it totally unfilled for 6 weeks after.  The last thing you want is to put any strain on those critical sutures before they have a chance to completely heal.

If your esophagus doesn't work right, it's hard to do well with a band.  Fixing the hiatal hernia does not fix your esophagus, unfortunately.

Dr. Curry-

I am 12 months (and 83#) post op and have just started having HORRIBLE joint pain. It's mainly in my hips (the only thing I can liken it to is being 9 months pregnant and your hip ligaments loosening) but also in my right knee and shoulders. I don't notice it much at work but in the evenings and first thing in the morning its awful. Getting up and down off the couch feels like I have gained 100 pounds. My hips hurt so bad in the morning I have threatened to borrow a toilet riser from work! LOL I've started avoiding shirts that require me to lift my arms above my head to save the shoulder pain.

I thought weight loss was supposed to relieve the pressure from joints? Do we have fat in our joints? (it's like I've lost the cushioning) Could it be a deficiency of some sort that is just manifesting itself as joint pain? I do take B-12 for my Crohns but haven't had any labs drawn in awhile. Any ideas?

This is really stalling my weight loss since exercising is out of the question.

Thanks for your time!