Bleeding marginal ulcers

Hello all. I'm brand new here and very glad I found this forum!!! I've had at least 3 marginal ulcers since 2012. The first healed quickly and wasn't a big deal. The second (early 2017) and third (August 2017) landed me in the hospital ICU. With the third I nearly bled to death with B/P dropping to 40/0. I'm now having really bad abdominal pain and reflux when I shouldn't be. I can't lie down because my stomach pain becomes unbearable. I'm fairly certain I have another ulcer and am scheduling an EGD Tuesday. Has anyone here ever had this issue and had to undergo a bypass revision? That's pretty much what I'm looking at with the recurring ulcers always in the same area. And quite honestly, it really scares me. I've not really had a very good experience with my RnY since about 2011. Thank you.

Susan (Amboline)

I am sorry you are dealing with that. A few years post op I was dealing with a lot of burning -GERD, and my doc put me of Rx PPI - diflucan. That helped a lot, though it is rather $$$ and insurance doesn't really want to pay for it. Mine does - after my gastro pushed that as the only thing that works.

I avoid any NSAIDs. I know even one Advil can cause trouble. Pills or topical creams or patches.

Plus I have food allergies, and extra acid can be generated when I consumed foods I am allergic to.

I also take allergy pills, plus Zantac. My gastro approved all of that as means to limit acid.

Thank you for sharing that with me. I'm on Protonix daily and am supposed to be taking Carafate, but it isn't available in my area due to back orders in all of the distribution companies. That's just crazy. I completely avoid NSAIDS of any kind and watch what I eat. Especially anything high in acid content. Plus, I live in Louisiana and our food tends to be very well seasoned. I have to be careful about that too. But it doesn't seem to matter what I do. I still get the ulcers on my anastomoses. I did fine with my bypass until a few years ago and then just suddenly started having lots of issues with it. My GI doesn't see my surgeon in a very good light. He's seen the results of my surgery in my EGDs. Called him a quack. Lol. But maybe having the revision done will solve all this.

Just seeing this today, and I'm sorry you are having such trouble with ulcers.

I have had severe issues. My RnY is actually a near-total gastrectomy with the RnY intestinal rerouting. In my case the preop ulcers would either not heal, or they would heal over and create scar tissue. My pyloric valve was constantly blocked and I spent way too much time in the hospital on an ENG tube.

It's been almost ten years since my WLS. I've struggled with many things but ulcers have not been one of them. There have been episodes that worry me a bit in the last year or so but I double down on making sure my stomach is taken care of (take my meds, extra fluids, etc) as soon as I feel any discomfort and it has worked for me. My life is a million times better.

Just some personal experience for you to consider. Losing most of your stomach tissue and knowing that you can't get that back to a surgery that may or may not help are some big dice to roll. For me though - I didn't think twice. The pain of the constant ulcers compounded by weighing 347 pounds was making life rapidly less livable.

You've got some serious decisions to make. My advice would be to research like crazy, make your decision and not waste time looking back. Come here to talk and ask questions and vent. You'll get more response if you post to the main boards. I hope you'll get the best possible outcome.

I'm sorry. I only just saw this portion of your reply. I still have the remnant portion of my stomach. Thank God I've not had to go through all that you had to. My experience was really easy for a long time. I was blessed in that way.

I might have missed it but I don't see any reference to your weight. Did you lose weight originally? Have you had regain?

Sometimes with ulcers and stomach distress we can gain weight because food that help our tummies tend towards simple carbs like crackers and such. I imagine your current weight and your track record of controlling it postop would also be a consideration, but that's speculation on my part. It would be helpful to know where you're at with that and to have your doc's opinion.

I apologize. Yes. I did have great weight loss success. My surgery was in 2005. I went from roughly 275 to 150. I?ve done ok with keeping the weight off. I?ve had times where it?s gone back up, but never even to 200. Right now I?m in the middle of a gain cycle. About 185 or so right now. I generally manage to stay around 145-150. But it?s because I?ve had a few years dealing with another health issue that?s just been one complication after another. My weight will come off again once I?m able to get back to my routine of exercise. I don?t really eat bad things, but any calorie will stick when you can?t get out and do anything to work it off. I think I said earlier that for years I never had any trouble with my surgery. I would?ve recommended it to anyone. Now I don?t think that, nor would I recommend it. For several years it?s just been one thing after another with my digestive system. All attributed to my RnY. So a revision of that is not something I?m looking forward to doing. But at least I now understand what the surgery actually did. I now know I was completely uninformed about what it entailed. I thought I knew. I knew what the surgeon told me. Which wasn?t everything. But, in 2005 they didn?t know what long-term complications were going to be. The surgery was too new then.

I understand your frustration and actually agree. In my world, a bypass or sleeve person should be made to explain back to the surgeon exactly what they think the surgery would do, exactly how their anatomy was going to be altered, and the life-long consequences of their choices.

You did mention you were successful. I brought up regain only because it seems to be a factor in many revisions, even those pursued primarily for other reasons.

Good luck. Whatever helps - I hope you find that.

Thank you. I'm glad I found this. I'm going to be exploring the site a lot more.

Just to add, I also wouldn't choose a revision if it was solely for the purpose of regaining weight. The revision is only because the ulcers have become life-threatening. They will also quite likely remove the remnant stomach. I'm not sure I like that idea, but I have a huge risk of ulcer bleeds in that area that they wouldn't be able to get to to easily repair.