Another Band Bites the Dust

After I had my Band removed, I contacted my friends who had LapBands and told them my story.  The response was the same for most everyone - "My band is great, I am going to keep it forever, I am never going to have mine removed."

Today, I got a phone call.  A friend who hasn't had an adjustment in 2 years was vomiting for 4 days.  She couldn't  even drink water.  It came right back up!  She went to see her doctor and he did an Ultrasound insisting that her stomach was fine.  However, her meds - 2 pills that she split and had taken 4 days prior were still sitting in her pouch.  Her doctor didn't require crushing and has always allowed her to split her pills.  She had never had problems, but now 4 days later, they were just sitting there.  Her doctor told her she was too tight.  He took out 1 ml and sent her home.  She asked how she could be too tight when she hasn't had a fill in 2 years.  He told her maybe she was on her period.  What an *ss!  She wasn't on her period!  This makes no sense to me, so she contacted another surgeon who does the Lapband in her area and one who sees her surgeon's patients when he is out of town.  She asked his opinion and he said that scar tissue builds up underneath and over the Band causing it to tighten suddenly.  He told her he wants her to have it removed immediately if she has another incident like this.    Of course, it happened again and the nightly reflux started at full force.  Looks like scar tissue has won again and another Lapband will be removed soon!

Yikes!!  I sure don't miss the nights of reflux and choking........poor thing.  Hope she gets relief soon!

I felt realy sad for her.  She's very one of the ones who was always hoping to keep her band forever!

I hope she'll be okay and that she'll be able to heal from the damage.

One of my friends who got banded shortly after I did is traveling out of the country to have her band removed next month, too. She's suffered for years with it. I'm praying that she has an uneventful surgery, as well.

My other friend had to go to Mexico in an emergency to get the Band removed.  Her insurance refused payment and it would have cost a lot.  I was thankful that they removed it for her.  She had been banded in the states at her cost.  Many people have no clue that once that band goes bad, it needs to be out ASAP

Yep that's me altho I still have my band in it is empty and I just pray I can avoid any further problems until I can get on medicare and revise to the sleeve. However this is my biggest fear that it will tighten more and I'll have to have it removed. I don't have bariatric coverage so it would be all on me and even if we weren't retired we still couldn't afford it. It's been empty for over 2 years so I just pray it will hold out another 2 yrs but who knows, it can hit all of a sudden too, like this gal.

Mine hit all of a sudden too!  It was great!  I was floating along, losing and feeling on top of the world and one night I waking up choking with a mouth full of acid!  Nothing had changed, no slip, no erosion, nothing changed, no recent adjustment! 

Gee..that must be horrible, I wonder how a surgeon can diagnose "scar tissue" without looking inside the body? My surgeon did not know how large my hernia was until he was in during surgery, also he did not know how much scar tissue I had until he was inside, thankfully he removed during my revision so I don't suffer now.

This NEW scar tissue phenomenal of "suddenly vomiting"  is so horrific, -- I can't wait until medical studies reveal more of this, for now medical professionals call constant vomiting obstruction, or being too tight from vomiting -- slippage.

 I am not sure if vomiting is worse with the lap band than with the Sleeve, I heard of a girl with the Sleeve was constantly vomiting and she had a stricture and they had to surgically go down her throat about 5 times in order for her drink water.

I am so glad that if things goes wrong with the band things can be easily fixed, or if you have to go under the anesthesia, you can just get the band removed, I can't image having to go under anesthesia 5-6 times in one month and have an endoscopy with the Sleeve just to ge****er down......thank god for the adjustability of the Band!.

Also the band has been around in Europe and Australia for over 20 years and there has never been a mention of "Scar Tissue" causing vomiting, and there have been MANY studies, throughout the years, I wonder if just certain Americans just have scar tissue to cause repeated vomiting.

I SURE HOPE YOUR FRIEND FEELS BETTER SOON!!!!!!!!!

And I'm glad she chose to get a second Opinion  So Often we trust our Surgeon's and they tend to just Dismiss our feelings & Pain. NO one Surgeon has all the answer's there is SO much they don't know about the LB ( usually only what the literature says)

And I believe that so much of what is experienced by US the ones with the LB's aren't  reported or shared.

I also believe that The Doctor ONLY goes on what the symptoms tell them ie.. Lack of feeling full, regurgitation,heartburn OH must be a POUCH ENLARGEMENT because that is what the literature tells them.

Scaring is not a "new" phenomenon anyone that has had surgery or an injury can develop scar tissue . So anyone that has had LB has scar tissue. If you were to ask any HONEST Surgeon that has removed a LB he will tell you YES Scar tissue was present, and for some possibly adhesions as well which in turn can cause a problem. Obviously I don't know BUT  possibly he's had patients' before that have had these same symptoms and Scar tissue was present as well.hence his comment?

"If things go wrong with the band they can be easily fixed" I'm sorry I beg to differ, Things like, vomiting at every introduction of water,food etc..isn't fun. Not being able to eat because a band is too tight, ending up with vitamin deficiencies,dehydration and being in PAIN for any reason is not fun.

I apologize that many of us  with a LB had some delusion of Grandeur believing this was a great thing for weight loss and a TOOL  that was going to help us.

We also thought we'd have it for more than 5 years or longer, and that we weren't going to have to go under anesthesia AGAIN, personally once is enough, And I don't take that decision lightly.

Loving your band is Wonderful, but being Factual is another and I thought that is what this Forum was about, helping others make an informed decision?

Curious minds would LOVE to know the outcome..PLEASE keep us posted!!!

And I'll be saying a PRAY for your Friend

Her doctor was a real Ass.  Seriously, "you must be on your period?"  WTH?

They checked to see if the pouch was enlarged, NOPE!  the esophagus enlarged, NOPE!  But there were the split meds sitting there in her upper pouch for all those days!  When asked point blank why would it just tighten on it's own when nothing has changed, "it must be your period!"  Loser!

I truly believe there are so many stories like mine and others who have suffered this way and they are not shared!  This first doctor knows good and well there is more to the story.

Any surgeon who has removed a Band, knows what lies beneath it and knows what causes a sudden tightening.

My pictures of my poor stomach were dreadful!  But I feel so fortunate that I got it out in time and I am not left suffering the rest of my life like Nic!