Question:
What are the odds that Laproscopic surgery wont work?

Ive been trying to have the Lap Band surgery for three years now. Last year, it looked like I was finally going to have the surgery. I met with my surgeon, had all my tests, yadda yadda yadda. Because of insurance issues, it didnt happen. Now a year later, I have a date... July 1. Last year when I had the ultrasound they told me that my liver was slightly enlarged. This year, because I have been through this process many times, I do not meet with the surgeon again until 3 days before the surgery. My pre op clearence is only 2 days before surgery. The reason my surgeons appt is so close to the surgery is because he is out of town most of June. Now, all the info they give you, and talk about says that they do Lap surgery, but if something happens for some reasom they will cut you open. I am scared out of my mind of being cut open and it is causing me some severe anxiety. I do not have to redo the ultrasound or anything and im worried about my liver. What are the odds that it has gotten bigger and such? How do I know? What are the odds that they end up cutting you open? I guess I would like some information from people who have gone through this. I know my surgeon is one of the top guys in the country, so im not worried about his expertise, but more about potential surgical issues. Thanks guys    — twistedbarbie (posted on June 5, 2005)

June 5, 2005
Hello.. after reading your inquiry, sounds like you have a lot of anxiety going on. You need to research WLS. I am two months post op and down 50 lbs. I see on your profile, you are getting the adjustable Lap band. I had the Laparascopic Roux-en-Y and the doctor said he may have to do an open if there is alot of scar tissue built up but he didn't. The open is no big deal. It is just a little more pain and a little longer healing period. Nervousness is normal before any surgery and I understand your feelings but I stayed on the computer on OH everyday learning and researching before my surgery on March 18th (almost 3 months ago). Hope you the best!
   — LindaKM

June 5, 2005
I don't the odds are very high that they would have to cut you open and especially not for the banding. The clause about cutting you open if necessary is in EVERY LAP surgery contract. It is just a precautionary thing. It "could" happen, but it's not very likely. Good luck! Carmen
   — kccjer

June 5, 2005
My doctor has better than 90% success rate when doing surgery with lap. I was in surgery for 5 1/2 hours because I had so much scar tissue but he was still able to do it lap. I had the lap Rny on April 15 and am down 45 lbs since surgery.......53 since I started the 2 day liquid diet before surgery. Good luck. Kelly
   — kylady372

June 5, 2005
Rachael, I actually had the RNY and not the band but I think this may help anyway. My doctor also warned me about possibly having to revert to open (we were starting out Lap) due to an enlarged liver - and also scar tissue from my tubal in 1994 - which was performed laparascopic. The surgery went from what was supposed to be an hour and a half to 4 hours long due to the above problems but he was able to complete it laparascopically. I know that we all have our nerves triggered by a certain something concerning this surgery - but I think you can put that particular issue to rest (concerning Open vs. lap). Also because in my support group there are 3 others there that had their surgery before me and they did have to have open and are doing very well - yes, the healing time is a bit longer and there is a bigger chance of infection - but you will be given specific instructions to watch for in case of infection and as long as you get in your necessary amounts of protein then healing could go faster than you realize. If you cannot get past this doubt in your mind, then it may be a good idea to postpone the surgery until you are more comfortable. Good Luck, Kelly
   — Kelly MzKelz Valdez

June 6, 2005
Seems to me like you are getting all worked up over a minor issue. This is one of the risks that you have to except if you want the surgery. If you are that afraid then maybe you should wait until you are more comfortable with those risks. That being said, I want to dispel a lot of crap that is said about open vs lap. pooh-pooh. I read all the time about how horrible open is and what great risks there are, blah, blah blah. Again pooh-pooh. ALL surgeries have great risks and the patient has to be willing to except those risks. Lap has many risks just like open, they may be different but still risks. I had open almost 3 years ago. I went in on Wednesday morning, surgery was 1 1/2 hours and was home 2 days later by Friday evening. No complications and I was back at work 2 weeks later. My scar is 4 inches long and practically invisible. I would never let the fact of a scar keep me from having this surgery. A scar was the least of my worries. My health was first and foremost. I always wondered...if there are people out there worried about a tiny scar from open surgery then what do they do when its comes time for them to have plastics? Research and be sure of what you want and what you think you can live with AFTER surgery. This is too big of a deal to make what you might think is a mistake.
   — Patty.W

June 6, 2005
My surgeon put me on a diet that will help your enlarged liver get smaller. I had to eat 6 oz. if meat (i ate baked chicken) a day. 2 oz for each meal, or 3 oz if you just want to eat the meat for the last two meals of the day. Also 1/4 cup of vegetables 3 times a day and 1/4 cup of fruit 3 times a day. If the fruit is canned it has to be in its own juices or in pear juice. I did this for 7 days before my surgery and lost 11 pounds from it. If you are worried about your really worried about your liver you can start doing the diet now and continue it until your surgery. I had my surgery Aug 26, 2004 and so far have lost 151 pounds. Good luck and hope this helps. You can also eat a bowl of soup a day if you get hungry. Just make sure it is broth based and not a cream of chicken or any like that. Also don't use over a tsp. of margarine a day. The reason this diet helps reduce the size of the liver is because of the reduced fat intake and the combination of the fruit and veggies. Also don't eat any red meat. You can have fish, tuna and chicken. Lisa
   — Lisa E.

June 6, 2005
I had my surgery on August 29, 2001. I had CHF, Left ventricular dysfunction, enlarged liver, arthritis, asthma, sleep apnea, fibromyalgia and other problems.This was to be my 21st surgery in my life. They said they would try to do a lap surgery and if they ran into problems they would open me up, which he thought he would, due to my previous surgeries and I have adhesions all though my abdomen. He did run into a lot of adhesions and was able to cut though them and do the laporascopic surgery. He didn't have to cut me open. I was one of his most risky patients and we were almost sure I would be cut open. I made it through with no complications and my liver got better and my heart improved and I lost 185 pounds. Since then I had an inguinal hernia a year later, surgery was a piece of cake for that one and I had to have my gallbladder out 2 years post-op. I am doing so much better, I am a new person. I am now 50 years old and just graduated from a 2 year college and will be going on for a bachelors degree in Computer information technology. The surgery was the best thing i ever did with my life. I would recommend it to anyone who has co-morbities. I know I now have a life and before the surgery I was not able to walk a block without stopping for a est and I did not walk very often.I was almost homebound prior to my Ruen-Y gastric bypass. I hope you go for it and I will keep you in my prayers that they won't have to cut you open. I hope this helps. I haven't posted here before but I thought I would answer your question since I can relate to the fear you are going through. I would say that your chances are minimal, at least from what I know, that you will need to be cut open. My surgeon was Dr Ira Ikrumaddin and my surgery was at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center at the Presbyterian hospital.
   — bzerm01

June 6, 2005
Hi. I oppted out of having the lap bad and going for the RNY because the lap band has a higher risk of regaining weight because the bad stretches..and you have to continuously have to keep going in to have it adjusted. I am not going to go through surgery with something that may fail...I am going for something with a much higher rate of success..of course this is my opinion hon. Hugs
   — Angelfirewithwings

June 6, 2005
To Nora, Your response did not address the question asked the poster was asking what are the chances of a Lap surgery turning to open not whetehr or not she should have the Lap Band. BTW The band DOES NOT stretch it is hard silicone plastic you ever tried to stretch silicone? Stretching of the band is NOT why you go in for adjustments you have it adjusted because its meant to be adjustable thats how the band works. If you don't have the correct information regarding the surgery please refrain from posting incorrect information. Thanks
   — Lisa F.

June 7, 2005
This is what my doctor said in my first orientation I went to: He attempts laproscopic on all patients, unless they have has numerous surgeries to the abdomen. He said he was successful about 96% of the time.
   — Patricia C.

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