Hi I am from Ireland. I had my band inserted 3 years ago. I lost 130lbs in 2 years and then despite several fills lost restriction. I gained 40lbs since last May. The clinic I had the band done with went bust so I was left with no aftercare. I eventually got an appointment for a fantastic private surgeon in Dublin who arranged an OGD and to my devestation he discovered I had almost 100% erosion. I had my band removed in February. My surgeon was able to remove the band through my mouth and my port through a small incision in my abdomen.

I have only gained 5lbs since removal but emotionally I am so devestated. I cannot cope with being able to eat normally again and I am so scared about regaining the weight again. I have discussed the posibility of having more wls with my surgeon. He said he does not rule it out but he wants me to see a food counsellor and dietician first.

I would love to hear from anyone who has gone through this and what advice they would have. I am very open to having more surgery. I am just so depressed and consumed with gaining the weight again. Thanks Brenners x

Hi Brenners!

Sorry to hear of your band loss!

If it were me, I'd not hesitate to consider a revision to another surgery. I'd work with my doctors to decide which was best.

After having success at a thinner, healthier life with the band, I'd not want to go back to my previous condition. I know for me, that would happen without the valuable tool of WLS.

Best wishes to you!

Brenners;

I am so sorry you had to experience all of that. It must be very difficult to have enjoyed that level of success, and then have this happen. I will say that you had a superb Surgeon….many Surgeons would have had to open you up completely to extract a band in that condition. You were lucky to have been able to have it dealt with in that manner.

A number of things come to mind. First, I know that this must be devastating to you. You have done so well with the Lap Band. You would certainly be considered to be among a select few who have lost that much weight with the Band. You should be very proud of yourself for that accomplishment. In spite of the fact that you had the band to assist, YOU did the work, and YOU made it happen.

The other thing you should know is that you are not alone in this. If you are thinking that you are a failure, or that you are simply unlucky, I would suggest that you try and not feel that way, because this outcome happens to people with the Lap band a lot more than you might think. Erosion is one of several outcomes that are becoming much more common.

While banding technology has been available for around 20+ years, it has only been widely used for about the last 11 years. It was only approved for use here in the US about 9 years ago, and it has only been in the last 3 or 4 years that a critical mass has been reached where it would be considered a “common” procedure. This means that we really do not know, on a large scale, what the outcomes are long-term. The unfortunate part is that as time goes by, we are beginning to see many outcomes such as yours.

The Chief of Bariatric Surgery at one the largest HMOs here in the states has told me on several occasions that he feels the Lap Band will be removed from the market in the near future because of increasing outcomes like yours. Other Bariatric Surgeons feel that the Lap band will be considered to be a temporary three to five year solution during which the emphasis will be on proactively changing the eating habits of the patient, rather than the present idea of it being a passive “permanent volume restriction”. I’m not sure that I agree that it will be removed from the market, because it has benefitted many people worldwide. But, there are members of the Bariatric community who feel that way, quite strongly.

So, you’re not alone in this. It has happened to a lot of people. I have seen it happen to people on this forum. Once they lose their band, they usually don’t stay around here long, but there are many posts in the Complications forum that attest to the fact that the band does, in fact, have a “Dark Side”.

I do think that it is possible to continue to lose or maintain a weight loss post-band. Many people have done it. In your situation, though, you have regained some weight when the band failed , so you might want to consider the other options that are out there. There are people on this forum who have lost their band and have moved on to bypass, or other options. One very well respected member of this forum (with over 6,000 posts) had their band removed recently because of problems, and is having a Bypass performed this coming Monday. Many people look at the Bypass as the “boogeyman” for some reason, and they wouldn’t even dream of having one. But the fact is that it is a very good surgery with a long history of success world-wide. If you feel that you really cannot continue to lose weight or maintain what you have lost, I would seriously consider it.

You will find people on this forum who can tell you what it’s like moving from a band to a Bypass. Nanook is one long-time member who revised to a Bypass.

Best of luck to you in whatever you decide!

S.

Just wondering how does doc tell if there is Erosion? ty