Candy Cane Roux Syndrome

Can anyone tell me about Candy Cane Roux Syndrome that has actually had experience with it??

Much appreciated!

Di

never heard of it, what is it?

Di:

Hi, I see you had your RNY in July of '05, me too.  I have been experiencing a lot of nausea and vomitting and I just underwent a bariatric study to see how fast my pouch is emptying.  They think I'm experiencing the Candy Cane Roux Syndrome. 

This is how it was explained to me.  When they attach your intestine to your pouch they don't attach it straight on, they attach it by using the side of the intestine which leaves a portion of the top of the intestine overhanging they call the candy cane; because it looks like a candy cane; depending on how much they leave.  It can cause food to go into the limb and stay there and come back up and/or eventually go down the right passage. 

I'm not sure about what exactly is going on with mine, just going through some tests to try and figure it out, but that is what they said on my last doctor's appt.

Are you having problems?

 

Hi Di,

I am going through this right now.  I was wondering what was going on...all the nausea and vomiting and the pain in the stomach.  I had an Endoscopy at Brigham and Womens in Boston with Dr. Chris Thompson who I found here at Obesity Help and he then referred me to Dr. David Lautz who is the head of Bariatric Surgery and I need an operation to fix this.  I am getting my surgery date this Thursday and will be so glad to have it done with !  I have an article from the obesity journal that I can email you that spells it out. Let me know if you would like it.

Hi!  Thank you for the responses!  I would absolutely love the article! 

Candy Cane Roux Syndrome is the only thing I can come up with that would explain my symptoms.  I had a revision in February, so I have a LapBand over my bypass.  However, my pouch was too small to put the band around so its function is to create a smaller stoma so the emptying is slower.  It is installed around the upper part of the small intestine. 

My major issues right now are nausea, which I am on Zofran for, horrible horrible stomach pains which I believe are due to acid, and I am never ever full.  And, I know it's not a mental hunger, I actually experience hunger pains.  It's just horrible.  I thought the hunger would go away with the banding, which it should have, but I feel like I am hungrier than ever!  I'm at a loss...so confused and just have no idea what to do. 

So, they diagnosed your candy cane with an endoscopy?  Is the only fix another surgery?  I don't know if I can deal with another one if that's what this is...

Keep me updated on how you are doing!! 

Di

Hi Di,

I sent you a response privately to your in box.

Gen

It sounds like perhaps this was already resolved but thought I would weigh in.  I had RNY in Feb 2008.  I got pregnant in Dec 2009.  I was extremely sick throughout my pregnancy and it was all chalked up to the pregnancy itself.  Immediately after having the baby I found that I was extremely hungry all the time and was shocked at the quantity of food I could eat.  I went to see my surgeon and he sent me for an upper GI.  The contrast showed a very long hanging roux.  The surgeon said it needed to come off.  It has taken me months to get my insurance to agree to fund it (partially because of an error on part of the doctor reading the upper GI).  My only true symptom besides diarea is that I am gaining my weight back fairly rapidly.  I was 260 pre-surgery, got down to 177 when I got pregnant and hit 205 when I gave birth.  I am not at 209.  I just received approval for the surgery but am going on a cruise in 2 weeks so I am waiting until April 18th to have my surgery.  I will let you all know how it comes out.