Question:
What do they mean by a stricture closing? What exactly happens?

   — Teresa B. (posted on November 30, 2009)

November 30, 2009
I imagine that this is in response to my question. This is when your pouch closes. I don't know how often this happens to people on the average, but I am nine weeks out and I am going back in the morning for a third dilation. A dilation is when your surgeon goes in and for lack of a better word, blows your pouch up with a balloon like object. If someone has this problem, there is no doubt, the first bite is obvious. Intense pain until you vomit. Imagine the worst charlie horse of your life, only in your lower left chest (where your actual stomach is) and you can't rub it like you can your leg if it was to cramp. Sorry, but I feel it's only right to be honest with you. And by the way, when I say it closes, I have seen the before and after of my pouch... It closes itself like water tight. If this happens to you, don't wait, contact your doc right away. I waited too long for the first dilation and I got super dehydrated as I wasn't even able to drink! Well, good luck with your endeavors. Hopefully your road will be without major bumps.
   — medic3992

November 30, 2009
A stricture is when part of the intestinal tract (sometimes it can be the stomach itself) wraps itself up sort of like the old fashioned sausages. Anyone who has stuffed sausage in their lives would recognize a stricture. When stuffing sausage, you fill the animal intestine up with the meat mixture and then twist the link and fill another segment. A stricture is much like that twist in the sausage. A common way to fix this problem is to push a fiber optic scope through the twist to get it to un-twist. Usually, this releases the stricture like un-twisting a balloon animal and allows the flow of food to resume. I hope this answers your question.
   — hubarlow

December 1, 2009
I was under the impression a stricture was the narrowing (or closing) of the stoma caused by scar tissue, not "twisting". At lease, this would be the common stricture for an RNY patient. I'm sure any blockage at any point in the digestion system would be called a stricture, but under normal circumstances it is not caused by twisting.
   — Jennifer F.

December 1, 2009
My friend had the lapband and she had to have it removed because she had scar tissue starting to grow over the opening to the stomach. So to my knowledge it is scar tissue that forms and creates the closure. Same as if you cut yourself how it starts to form tissue around it to heal it. I hope this explains it.
   — Kristy