Barium swallow shows ok but it's not ok
i finally got an appointment with a new lapband dr. Explained all my symptoms.... 35 lb weight gain, shoulder pain, back Bain after eating , difficulty keeping anything down, port pain that extends to my belly button and burns. So we talked extensively about doing a revision, he said he needed to do a barium swallow to see if I had a band slip or erosion, I went and had the barium swallow and much to my irritation he got report that everything looked just fine. I got the call from his nurse and she said that I could join the lapband aftercare program and suggested I come in for a fill !!! REALLY ! A fill ? I vomit everything I attempt to eat and feel like I'm having a heart attack . FRUSTRATED
You need to find a different doc this one is an idiot and knows nothing about bands! The band can "look" fine from a swallow and many other tests and still be eroding or what yours sounds like is an infection somewhere along the tubing or port. If anything you need a total unfill or at least a partial one to relieve the vomitting. Try doing liquids for a few days to let your tummy settle down that might help. Keep looking for another doc who is an expert with bands or someone who has removed many of them. They are hard to find and you may have to travel to find a good one but until that is removed you will continue to have problems. Just all the symptoms you are having should be reason enough for the insurance to cover removal unless you are self pay then you just tell him to get it out now! Keep pushing and don't give up because that thing needs to be removed!!
My test came back normal to but when my dr got inside....man o man. My stomach had totally encapsulated the band. It looked like my stomach tried to swallow it. I always said I'd eat anything. Seriously, my simple band removal turned in to major surgery and I was in the hospital for 18 days. It was horrible. The fact that I couldn't even keep water down and almost chocked to death at night was enough for him to agree that it needed to come out.
Wow! Thank you for sharing your story, how horrific! I'm glad you came out ok. What is your status as far as having further wls ? Did you choose to not have anything else done after that terrible nightmare ? My frustration comes from knowing something is wrong and getting the proper testing . It's very annoying .
I am in Nashville. I tried to find your previous question but it seems I am not as tech savvy as I thought so if I don't answer your question feel free to re-post. So after that surgery my doctor suggested that I wait at least a year before having anything else done to my stomach. & I have to tell you, after that long stay in the hospital I was not ready to have any other type of surgery. Originally it was supposed to be a revision, but problems with my insurance delayed that happening. I would not have been able to get it anyway after he got inside and saw what a mess I was. He even gave me pictures of my stomach. YUCK! So right now I am just trying to follow a healthy diet and see what happens. I am still leery about going back under the knife. If it had been a textbook case in and out of the hospital then I'm sure I would have went ahead and had the revision by now. The surgery did change my whole relationship with food. Since the surgery food doesn't taste the same, my digestion has changed, even smells have changed. So I can only wonder what another surgery to my stomach would do. I had so much trouble with the band and never really lost me wait. I wish I would have just gotten the bypass at first.
