vertical silastic ring gastroplasty

MY husband had this surgery 4-14-03 by Kenneth Bryce.He lost 200 lbs in 2 months but then gained it all back. My husband has almost died 2 times in 3 years. He now has blood clots in his heart & lungs. This last time he almost died he was throwing up every thing even water. He went to the ER they found food stuck in what should have been his pouch from the surgery but the G.I. said it isn't a pouch with a funnel at all it is more like a bowl with a hole in the bottom of it. From all of the medicine he has to take from the blood clots that keep forming in the stomache he now has 14 ulcers 9 of which are bleeding since he is on anticoagulants they can't fix the ulcers so he is bleeding intermally. They told him that the need to go in & correct the vertical silastic ring gastroplasty or it will kill him but if they do it will kill him he could bleed to death.

Ahh yes lovely vgb.  I had it in 2001 but I think mine was Ritter, but they were working together.  I had a revision just this year to bypass as yes my staple line came undone, I started to have a blockage at the hole where the ring was.  My acid reflux was horrible, and I had gained back half of what I had lost, which was not much in the first place.

If you can your husband needs to look into getting a revision to a different surgery, if anything to fix his stomach.

I had the VGB with Bryce as well in 96, I lost around 90 lbs but gained back 30 over the years. I had revision to RYN last year and my current surgeon (who I think is great) did not find the ring. I did have complication in the beginning but I could not be happier with my decision to have the revision.

I think you need to visit different surgeons who do revisions and see what is best approach is fixing his stomach.

I had the same surgery in 97,  Went to Dr Davidson, Dr Barker and Dr Bryce about issues I was having.   I picked Dr Bryce, he removed the old ring and replaced with the lap band.  Everything got worst.  When I went to him with the issues, no help.   I was not going to live this way for the rest of my life so I went back  to Dr James Davidson.  I  wished I would have picked him before the lap band.   I have not been able to eat like normal since 1997.  In 2008 Dr Davison did the revison to the RNY.   Now I eat more and have lost all the weight I needed. 

http://bscdallas.com/

Very happy I no longer have the band!