Question:
what are the symptoms of a staple line disruption?

I posted this question yesterday, but did not include enough information about myself. I am 2.5 years post-op open RNY. I am not transected. I have gained 40 pounds in the last 14 months or so. Though I try to keep my portions small, I CAN eat 2 sandwiches, or a hamburger (with bun) and pot. salad in about 15-20 minutes. I am very full but not DYING when I eat these amounts of food. When I eat small portions, I am STILL HUNGRY.. not satisfied at all. My questions.. are there any other symptoms of SLD besides weight gain and ability to eat increased amounts of food? Is there pain? Is it possible for that tiny pouch to stretch and accommodate that large amount of food? For anyone who had a SLD, after it was corrected, did you lose weight? Thanks for any help!    — Karen O. (posted on January 21, 2004)

January 21, 2004
Hi, I answered yesterday but yes, it does help to have more info. I did lose more weight after transection. I lost 68 llbs with my original rny and then the staple line disrupted. I still managed to lose 10 lbs over the course of an entire summer but had to really work at it. I knew something was wrong. After transection, I have lost another 70 lbs or so. I had another honeymoon period with the repair too.l It was kind of a blessing looking back at it. But two surgeries is not much fun! Don't become too frustrated if you can help it and find out if there is a problem with your staple line. Next and most importantly: WERE YOU TRANSECTED the first time????? Very important because if you were, then you don't have SLD. If you were not, then you could have SLD. Transected means the actual physical cutting and separating of the old stomach and the new small pouch. Some surgeons still just staple and do not cut the two apart. Find this out first.
   — Mylou52

January 21, 2004
Hi Karen, I had a SLD with my VBG. Before I knew what was wrong I ended up gaining back 90 of the 130 I had lost. My only symptom was the loss of fullness that came with my up til then normal size meals (normal for a post VBG). What was weird was that some days I could only eat a little and some days nothing seemed to satisfy me. I also continued to get sick at least once a week. My dr. explained that it was because I basically had two openings to my lower stomach: one thru the ring he placed with the VBG and the other thru the SLD. Sometimes food would get caught between those and nothing worked except to bring it back up. So even though I was still getting sick on a regular basis, I still ended up gaining weight. With your first surgery being RNY, you wouldn't necessary have this problem. But since you were not transected at first, it could very well be a SLD. After my revision to RNY I did lose the 90# I had gained back, but it was slower this time. Still haven't made it to goal, but I'm pregnant, so that comes first. Good Luck.
   — Ali M

January 21, 2004
I did not notice I could eat appreciably more (I was 5 yrs), nor was I hungry sooner. BUT I suddenly had a pouch full of acid. What? Acid could not get into my pouch! So, that was the clue for me. I didn't get the wt gain for awhile after getting the official news, only regained 12# before revision, but the acid made me nauseated. AND I fought off every pound with protein supplement.
   — vitalady