Revision of RNY after fistula

Hello everyone..was wondering if anyone has had a revision after RNY/
I had a silastic ring that eroded and caused an ulcer. My original surgery was
lap RNY and about 9 1/2yrs ago. I am now faced with a gastric fistula. This
means there is a communication of new pouch with old stomach. I have gained
about 35lbs since original surgery. I can eat lots more and have an appetite! My
Dr. said I could have a revision of same old surgery. Scared of the revision
and scar tissue. Looking for anyone with similar issues.

hello, just had revision due to the same issues.  fistula formed probably years ago but i finally got it fixed just last week.  there was some concern with scar tissue in my case, but i had a great surgeon so all went well.  the difference between us is i waited for all the weight to come back so i have a long way to go down again.  if you get if fixed right now you wont have to battle back as much.  where is your surgeon.  hope he is the best.

Hello! thank you for responding! Wow..just last week?? How are you feeling?
Did you originally have Laproscopic RNY and then revision to same? When was your original surgery? Same dr?
Mine was done Lap RNY and the revision would be the same. Dr. said he would re -do pouch a bit smaller and remove the part of old stomach that controls appetite.
My surgeon is .Dr..Michael Perez.@ US Bariatrics..Ft. Lauderdale FL
He has done many revisions and surgeries.
10 yrs ago Dr. Robert Marema did my original surgery. He is now is St. Augustine FL.
He did say there may be concern with scar tissue and it may take him a little longer.
I will now have to wait for him to get on my insurance ( in process) and hopefully I will get clearance and coverage for revision.
Was it as painful as the old? Who is your surgeon??
Not sure how long I have the fistula..but I know for quite some time I could eat more. I thought this was due to me stretching the pouch.
 However..It was comforting to know that the surgery failed me..and not the other way around.
The silastic ring caused all of this .
Thanks again for your help!!! wishing you well. Hope the weight flies off

 okay so my first surgery was done in boston 20 years ago and there were no laporoscopic techniques being used back then.  open all the way baby with a 9 inch scar running down my chest to prove...actually,during my first procedure i developed complications in the form of a leak 2 days post op.  in those days they just opened you back up to repair and hoped for the best.  truly came very close to dying that time.  so no, this time was no where near as bad as that.  
also,  the fact that i had to be reworked back then probably contributed to the amount of scar tissue my surgeon dealt with this time so i am not ur average bear.  in fact i was on the table 9 hours total this time, which is a lot of time.  the result has been a slow comeback in my energy but i am tolerating everything i try to eat/drink so so far so good.  my current surgeon david lautz is the bomb thank god, because i really appreciated his expertise.  make sure you understand that this is major surgery and you will do fine.  good luck with insurance

Hello, just ran across your post.  Have you had your surgery?  I am scheduled for surgery 11/8/10.  My original surgery was 3/08.  I have developed a gastric fistula.  My surgeon is Bruce Brient and I will be having my surgery @ North Fl Regional Medical Center in Gainesville.  From what I understand - he will remove my bypassed stomach all together.  He also said he would probably redo the pouch and the anastamosis - in other words redo my RNY.  If you have already had your surgery, how are you and how much weight have you lost thus far?  I was so happy to find this post.  Thanks, Lynne

Okay, I just had surgery this past Monday!  Sorta the same thing you have going on.  I had a rny 5 YEARS ago.  I work at the hospital where I had the RNY, think this may help a bit, since they own the insurance company.  I have gained about 25 lbs and developed a hiatal hernia.  Now, since I developed the hernia, the insurance paid for the surgery, whi*****luded revision of my old pouch.  However, he could not move the Roux Limb for more malabsorption because it was moved down as far as it could go.  Sooooo, here's what I had done AND covered by insurance.  I had my pouch redone and is now between 2-3 oz. 

I'm feel like I'm carrying a 10 lb baby, but remember this feeling after the first RNY surgery!  So, I'm on liquids, then pureed, just like the original RNY.  I'm hoping that it will work because I also have felt that the malabsorption plays a big part!  He cleaned up some of the scar tissue because I did have a tummy tuck (also covered under insurance) and a bowel obstruction, hence the reason he didn't mess with the Roux Limb.

Hope this helps, I'm just a week post op today so I'm still recovering and slowly this time. 

Sherri

Wow! thanks Sherri for responding!
Just this past Monday!
how are you feeling today?
was the pain as bad as the original surgery??
How long did it take you for insurance approval?
They approved a tummy tuck too!!
How did you get them to do this also?
Is this because you work at the hospital?
A bit worried about the scar tissue.
Dr said he will do another RNY lap.
he will fix the fistula and remove the part of the stomach that is responsible for appetite. he will re-do the pouch. Hopefully there will be no chance for communication again.
nervous more the 2ND time around.
Any help would be welcomed!!
Be well!!
Thanks so much
Karen

Hi, what were some of the symptoms you wer having? I am 9 years out and found a knot and I can eat more and I have gained about 40 pounds within the last year.

Hi!
Thank-you for responding to my post.
I originally had this "hollow" feeling above and below my belly button. It was lower abdominal.
I had 2 endoscopy's. the first showed a big ulcer and a broken silastic ring.
The second one showed no ring.
The pain in the stomach got worse and worse due to the ulcer.
I noticed slowly that i could eat more and more and had no restriction.
The upper GI showed the fistula.
I had RNY  almost 10 yrs ago.and will be going for revision of Lap RNY again.
Hope you feel better!
Let me known what they find...if anything.

Hi and thanks for the information.
I went to a gastroenterologist on this past Monday. He stated he could not feel the lump and he thought it could be my stomach muscle (but I don't do ANY heavy lifting of any kind). So he has scheduled me for an endoscopy on this Friday as he stated to see if there is anything and to see if the RNY is still working. I do know that at times I can eat more and sometimes I can barely eat. So right now wait and see, and he is sending me to a Bariatric clinic.