My story starts in July of 2010. I received my Lap-Band on the 23rd. My surgery was performed by Gerald Kirshenbaum in Denver, Colorado. He said it went well after the surgery but mentioned that my liver was lacerated during retraction and he had to repair a hiatal hernia. He felt that the laceration was no big deal because it stopped bleeding before he ended.

Fast forward 8 weeks and 20 pounds less. I started having stomach cramps, vomiting and body aches. Dr. K's office felt I was having after effects of having food stuck. It lasted five days before I couldn't take the cramps and went to the ER. After blood work and CT scan I was sent home with no diagnosis except for a slightly elevated white blood count. My Lap-Band looked to be in place.

The next week I continued to feel horrible. Went back to Dr.K and he prescribed antibiotics for elevated white blood count. After four days I went to my general practitioner because I figured I must have that damn swine flu. He gave me a shot for the pain and said I should feel better in about four hours. After five hours I felt so much worse that I ended up in the ER again. They did new blood work and my d-Dimer was elevated so they did an ultrasound looking for a bloodclot. None was found. They sent me home around midnight with no answers.

The next day my symptoms worsened. I had a fever of 104.3 and was retching violently. I lost consciousness for a period of time and when I awoke my lips were blue. This resulted in another trip to a different emergency room. When I got there my BP was 80/50 and in severe pain. They quickly diagnosed me with Septicemia (also known as Sepsis). After taking a new CT scan they decided I had air or Fluid around my liver. The ER doctor started an Internal Jugular central venous line and started aggressively treating me with multiple antibiotics. My life was on the line.

I live in Colorado Springs. I was transported by Flight for Life to a hospital in Denver where my lapband surgeon was located. When I arrived they wanted to go in laparoscopically to explore my liver situation and check my lapband but my blood pressure was so low that I was unstable. They put me in ICU for a blood transfusion and platelet expansion to hopefully stabilize me. My kidneys were starting to fail.

The next morning they wheeled me down to the OR but my blood pressure was too low to use laparoscope so they had to cut me open from chest to naval. I was so full of infection that it was pressing on my organs and that was what was causing my pain. He found the infection under my liver cleaned it up and placed a drain. While in there he also removed my lapband.

I was put into a medically induced coma for two days with my family receiving a 50/50 chance of survival. When my organs started rebounding they brought me out while still having a respirator placed to help me breathe. After my body proving to them it could breathe on its own, they removed the respirator. I spent the next 10 days in ICU and CCU recovering my health.

I was sent home with a picc line for six weeks of IV antibiotics to be given up to four times a day. After a few weeks I was diagnosed with pneumonia in both lungs resulting in having one tapped for the extraction of fluid.

What a mess this all was! I can't explain what I went though physically, emotionally and financially.

I'm not telling you this story to scare you or make you change your mind. But I just want you to know that not everybody's outcome is a success. When they tell you there are risks..you should believe them!

Oops...in reply to bayoufirlmrsc. Although I appreciate the suggestion, this my story and I get to title it anyway I see fit. That is why it includes "with" instead of "because of". I am fully aware of the fact that a complication of my lap-band surgery almost killed me.

I'm a Healthcare Pro, conduct clinics in various hospitals and treatment centers....she explained the symptoms, the onset....I'm curious what the findings were...nothing to do with the band, but infection control which is a major concern for all, especially in a surgical suite...or was it post op wound care....

Things like that perk my ears from being around it all day...again nothing to do with weight loss or the band...

When these things happen, people are interrogated so it does not happen again...i's a bad mark on someone..

A few posts back I answered what bacteria were found. Nobody could give me answers.

So i went on line and looked up your dr. and yes you were correct. Plenty of reviews saying what a wonderful dr. he is/was. All the way to recently in 2013. What i didn't see was a review from you telling "your story". It seems to me that at some point in the past 5 years you could have taken time to do so. And WARN others not to use this doctor. But instead you come here and rant about and imply how the Lapband almost killed you. No matter how you think your "wording" of the title of your post did not indicate as such.... IT DID and that was your intent. To tell your story, get your "im sorries" and try and stop others from have LB surgery because if it weren't you would have be compelled to write a review, sue the doctor, and come here 5 years ago and rant. If you were that concerned with others safety and health... why wait 5 years?

Your right not all LB surgery are successful... but there are tons of successes to every NON success. NOT all surgeries period are successful ... that's why we all sign the papers saying we understand the risks involved in going under the knife.

Be

So i went on line and looked up your dr. and yes you were correct. Plenty of reviews saying what a wonderful dr. he is/was. All the way to recently in 2013. What i didn't see was a review from you telling "your story". It seems to me that at some point in the past 5 years you could have taken time to do so. And WARN others not to use this doctor. But instead you come here and rant about and imply how the Lapband almost killed you. No matter how you think your "wording" of the title of your post did not indicate as such.... IT DID and that was your intent. To tell your story, get your "im sorries" and try and stop others from have LB surgery because if it weren't you would have be compelled to write a review, sue the doctor, and come here 5 years ago and rant. If you were that concerned with others safety and health... why wait 5 years?

Your right not all LB surgery are successful... but there are tons of successes to every NON success. NOT all surgeries period are successful ... that's why we all sign the papers saying we understand the risks involved in going under the knife.

Wow! Angry much? Let me touch on some "points" you made.

Please quote where I am implying that you shouldn't get a lapband. NOWHERE in what I've said or implied has been to stop someone from getting the lapband.

If you had done your research on my story (to get my I'm sorries like you say) or my doctor you would have noticed that he retired a few months later. So, yes, I felt that posting a terrible review about someone who was no longer practicing wasn't in my nature.

Whether or not I have contacted an attorney regarding a lawsuit is my business and not yours.

Maybe you should go back and read my story again. It's been three years since my surgery and less than three years since all this happened but however you want to do the math is fine.

Have a happy day!

First, sorry for getting the date wrong... so replace the 5... with a 3ish. There.. better?

I was Angry at the way you disrespected the other people here. People that were just asking questions and trying to understand where you were coming from. You said you never told anyone to not get the LB... NO you didn't but, naming a post..... I almost died with the lapband..... does imply just that. What happen to you was terrible, but you got it removed and im guessing your doing ok.... So move on.

Your doctor did retire.... at the end of 2011... because he was still doing LB's at least till sept of 2011 according to this site. You got banded in July of 2010, 8 weeks later started having trouble... so, give or take.. all this happened sept-oct of 2010..... but he was still doing bands a year later and you did feel the need to write a review because it's not in your nature... but its in your nature to come here 3ish years later.... ok

Did you just wake up 3 years later and think..... Hummmm even though my doctor no longer practices, i no longer have the band.... I'm going to tell my story today. What were you trying to get out of posting "your story"? Why come here and scare other people?

Yes it is clear that the lap band did not cause the problem, however the liver was lacerated thus causing an infection. This can happen in any abdominal surgery not just with the lap band.. Yes the title leads one to believe that the problem resulted from the lap band when in fact it did not, it was something that happened during the placement of the lap band. With that being said a title of maybe almost died from complications during lap band surgery might have been better. But that easily could have been almost died from complications during gall bladder surgery, do you see where I'm going with this. I am so sorry you had this happen to you. The fact is lap band surgery is very safe, safer than many other types. I am sorry this has become a big debate again I feel it was miss wording as in fact the lap band itself did not cause the problem that happened however it happened during your lap band surgery again it could happen during any abdominal surgery.

perfectly said... skb123

Guess it's a good thing this guy retired.

Not really Guy.... according to this website he has 70 something patients and NONE of them has ever said a bad word about him. Also looked him up and EVERY review was great.

What happen to her could have happen to anyone during any surgery around the liver. It was an accident.

You guys win! I'm done

First, sorry for getting the date wrong... so replace the 5... with a 3ish. There.. better?

I was Angry at the way you disrespected the other people here. People that were just asking questions and trying to understand where you were coming from. You said you never told anyone to not get the LB... NO you didn't but, naming a post..... I almost died with the lapband..... does imply just that. What happen to you was terrible, but you got it removed and im guessing your doing ok.... So move on.

Your doctor did retire.... at the end of 2011... because he was still doing LB's at least till sept of 2011 according to this site. You got banded in July of 2010, 8 weeks later started having trouble... so, give or take.. all this happened sept-oct of 2010..... but he was still doing bands a year later and you did feel the need to write a review because it's not in your nature... but its in your nature to come here 3ish years later.... ok

Did you just wake up 3 years later and think..... Hummmm even though my doctor no longer practices, i no longer have the band.... I'm going to tell my story today. What were you trying to get out of posting "your story"? Why come here and scare other people?

Wow, you are one RUDE lady!

Unlike you, I have not disrespected one person or poster on here, including the surgeon.

The less you respond to rude, critical, argumentative people, the more peaceful your life will become.

Not to comment on the Original Post, but every time I see this Heading /Title, the biggest thought that runs across my mind is:

Without the Lap Band, I surely Would have Died...!

Just saying....

My father nearly died from a hip replacement a number of years back. He contracted MRSA had to get it surgically cleaned out a number of times, that didn't work, he then had to have the prosthesis removed and wait a couple of months . Luckily they eventually cleared the infection and were able to put another prosthesis in. The downside is that he now has 1 leg shorter than the other and has to have specially built up shoes.

Hip replacement surgery is common and relatively safe but my Dad was one of the unlucky ones that ended up with a major problem. We all know that there are risks to surgery but we all hope that we won't be the one that is affected.

Sorry that you were unlucky.

First' date=' sorry for getting the date wrong... so replace the 5... with a 3ish. There.. better?

I was Angry at the way you disrespected the other people here. People that were just asking questions and trying to understand where you were coming from. You said you never told anyone to not get the LB... NO you didn't but, naming a post..... I almost died with the lapband..... does imply just that. What happen to you was terrible, but you got it removed and im guessing your doing ok.... So move on.

Your doctor did retire.... at the end of 2011... because he was still doing LB's at least till sept of 2011 according to this site. You got banded in July of 2010, 8 weeks later started having trouble... so, give or take.. all this happened sept-oct of 2010..... but he was still doing bands a year later and you did feel the need to write a review because it's not in your nature... but its in your nature to come here 3ish years later.... ok

Did you just wake up 3 years later and think..... Hummmm even though my doctor no longer practices, i no longer have the band.... I'm going to tell my story today. What were you trying to get out of posting "your story"? Why come here and scare other people?[/quote']

You certainly did your research didn't you... I have no idea why you are getting so angry and defensive. This poor lady almost lost her life due to Having this surgery ( yes I said surgery and not Lapland). She told her story. Let her tell it. I reread her post and nowhere in there does it trash the lb. the title of her thread may be misleading but anyone curious enough to know what her thread was about would read it and see that she almost died from this surgery. I sympathize for this lady and not once felt as though she was trying to scare people from having the Lapland. It's a wake up reminder that anyone can have complications from any surgery, including lb surgery. Not trying to stir the pot, just saying, cut the lady some slack. I'm sure this was a very scary experience for her. Grilling her on how she worded something, or criticizing her for why she did or didn't right a review is fruitless. Who cares why she didn't. Thank god she survived this ordeal.

I get defensive when people come here and insult or disrespect my friends. The people that do nothing but try and help other and then people like this woman.

If you want to sympathize with her... Go ahead.

Writing a review is NOT fruitless.... Tons and tons of people everyday look to the internet for guidance and read reviews on doctors and make decisions on weather or not to go to that person. She her self said that she researched him and everything was Rosy... Her not writing something was the same as saying..... go ahead.. do it to someone else.