Possible Leak or Kink

Vera · January 29, 2004

Your brilliant minds can help!!

I went for a blind fill yesterday and this is how it went:

Dr. numbed port area, inserted hebber needle.

Went to withdraw old saline/fill, only got .5cc's out, previous fill 10 weeks ago was at 3.5cc's(I'm thinking I have big gremlins).

He pulled that needle out and got a brand new needle and again nothing came out.

So he put 2cc's in then tried to get that out...nothing.

Pulled the needle out and tried again...nothing would come out, not even a drop(by this time I'm expecting blood)

As were looking at each other they already have a Flouro scheduled with iodine solution to check for leaks. The questions start "when did you loose restriction, quick or slowly" Well I still have alittle restriction and it depends on what I eat. I was getting hungry between meals and was able to eat quite abit. Personally I was thinking of canceling the appt. but decided to have a check-up and alittle fill(at the cost of $75.00).

He claims if it was quick loss of restriction the port could have broke off the tube, if its slow loss of restriction the tubing could have a leak or the band it self. There gos the $$$ I'm a self pay, what if its a matter of life and death?

Then I drank/gulped Water, not a problem. I decided to wait on flouro a few days, make some calls to Dr. Sanchez and see how I feel.

So I have lunch, 5 bites of chicken and I feel it. I've got restriction that I've never felt, not bad just can feel the ball of food sitting there. The same thing at dinner. In the morning I'm not hungry, lately I have been, but not today. I have a Protein Shake, couple pints of water and a yogurt. Lunch 1/2 cup of chili was all I could take.

So the better half has an idea "what if the tubing is kinked" The solution is forced in but can't come out.

Now I'm imagining myself on the flouro table none of the old solution is coming out so they put in the iodine solution which closes me off completely and I'm in surgery.

I'm still calling and expecting calls from every lapband associate I know. Wondering how long I should wait, possible to see if I loss restriction soon.

Lost... but overall feeling pretty good.

Any thoughts, advice...Thanks

GingerRenayd2 · January 29, 2004

You poor thing.. Please keep posting. I'd like to know myself what is going on..

GOOD LUCK- I'll be thinking of you!

Alexandra · January 30, 2004

Vera, if I were you I'd spring for the fluoro if for no other reason than to see what's going on. I don't believe they need to inject anything into your band to see it with the fluoroscope. If I recall correctly, at my fill the needle only went in after the doctor had spied everything on the screen and saw that everything was in place.

If the kinked-tube idea turns out to be the right one, your doctor should be able to tell that without injecting anything additional. And if not, you'll be well on your way to finding out if there's a leak.

Now the question is, what if there is a kink or a leak? Both of these things may require minor surgery to repair. Are you prepared for that? If there's a kink perhaps you could do nothing and be fine, but you'd know what you're up against in the future if you ever lose restriction again.

I say, knowledge is power. Let the doctor see what he sees and take it from there. Good luck and keep us posted!!

sarellano · January 31, 2004

Vera, I'm kind of in the same position as you. I went to another doctor for my 1st fill because it was cheaper than flying to Mexico (I'm a self-pay too). When the surgery was originally done, the doctor put in 3 cc's (I have the swedish band) which is typical, but when I went to the fill doctor, he was only able to pull out 1/2 cc. So I'm wondering where the other 2.5 cc's went in 2 months. I had to beg my husband for the surgery and he is supportive but reminds me that it was a huge sacrifice. It's even a sacrifice to afford the fills, so there is no way I could afford to go back into surgery to get it fixed. I'm afraid something is wrong because that is alot of cc's in 2 months. Let me know how your experience goes re: loss of cc's.

Vera · February 1, 2004

Thanks for your concern

I'm just checking in, my 2 year son is in the hospital with namonia(spelling)? Can't breath, not asmatic. Anyway Talking with others I believe I have a kink, agian only Fluoro will tell. I can live with this untill I feel a change in restriction. I'm at the sweet spot!

Sarelano I have an AMI Swedish ban. I know Barb is at 7ccs. I think I'm at about 4.7ccs. Its all about how tight the doc wraps the band during placement and the fat around your stomach. I will get back to you on this.

Doing the night shift at the hospital

Alexandra Hug your kids tight.

xox

sassaay · February 1, 2004

Hi Vera,

I am sorry to hear about your son. I hope he is feeling better. Having pneumonia as a child is miserable... well, it is probably miserable as an adult too... but I always feel so badly for sick children.

My thoughts are with you and your family.

Take Care,

Alexandra · February 1, 2004

Oh, Vera, I hope your son gets better quickly!! It's so hard when the kids are sick; you just want to take it all away from them and you can't. :confused:

Please let us know how he's doing when you get a chance. And I hope your sweet spot stays with you!

Vera · February 3, 2004

:confused: Huter is home and fine!! We had to do alot of breathing treatments, with a 2 year old screeming...he was hog tied. Now hes jumping on the bed like a monkey. Thanks for all your concerns, we were very scared, with all the flu deaths of children, even our doctor was calling the hospital every 3 hours through out the night for checks and directions.

Sarellano I had a response from a lady which states she has the same problem of not getting her old fill out till she stands up while getting her fill/unfill, an act of gravity she claims. I haven't tried this yet,. she sounds genuine. My question to you is "how long has it been since your last fill and how restricted do you feel" Also some of your saline will stay in the port or tubing, You can never get out exactly what was put in!

I am monitoring my intake for levels of restriction. chicken, beef, pork is very restricted unless thin sliced. Fish, vegis.. I can only take about 1/2 cup, get the hicups and/or feel the lump/ball in the stoma. Yogurt, cottage chesse..I can eat alot. This is my way of regulating my restriction, to see if there is any loss over time..and everyone will tell you every day (restriction)can be different. I believe I'll be watching this for weeks before I can make a discision to look under fluoroscopy to find out why my "old fill didn't come out". I'm glad to be home with my kids, They are #1.

Alexandra hows the new photo album? Can you get outside?

Sassaay I hope your in surgery's in the morning, I hav'nt kept up my reading, I hope things pulled through for you!!

Good Luck everyone...Much weightloss for all:D

Alexandra · February 3, 2004

I'm so glad to hear your son is doing better! What an ordeal for such a little one. :confused:

I'm another one who doesn't put much stock in the actual amounts going in and coming out of the band. That's unusual for me, actually, because if you ask my friends they'll tell you that I'm the one who always has to understand everything before I'm happy. But with this instrument I'm satisfied to leave it up to a quirk of nature. We're talking about tiny amounts of Fluid and as we all know the same 2 cc's can create very different amounts of restriction in two people or even the same person from day to day.

I think a leak would make itself known pretty obviously via a complete and consistent loss of restriction. If it comes and goes there must be some Fluid left. Anyway, I'm glad to hear you are worrying less about both your band and your boy!

We never did get to do the photo album, because we did something even better. We finally joined the Y! I've been waiting until my younger daughter was old enough to cooperate (two kids with one being a total loose cannon is a little more than I can handle alone), and Sunday seemed to be the day. So we went over to this great Y near us and signed up the whole family. I'm really excited about it because I'll be able to exercise at my convenience plus have great times with the girls in the pool and gym. It's worth every penny!! :D