My band has to come out this Tuesday. Had endoscopy this week and was shocked to learn that my band has eroded into my stomach. The pics are ugly and scary. I didn't have any signs other than could eat more and fills weren't helping. My doc took a barium swallow and suggested that I have an upper endoscopy. The pics show this nasty black band (yes, it looks black not white!) in my stomach. The area nearby is also leaning more toward red than pink and the Gastroenterologist said I have gastritis and esophagitis too. Anywho I am a bit sad about it, but really just want the ugly black thing taken out. My surgeon said I will be in hospital from Tuesday morning until Friday morning. They won't be letting me eat or drink anything until Friday morning. Yikkes!!! Does anyone know if I will have to start with liquids and proceed to mushies and then solids? Just curious because I need to grocery shop before I go in the hospital so that I can have what I need at home already. Anybody got any suggestions for the food, or for anything else related to lapband removal? Please let me know. I'm sorry that this is run on, but when I'm on this program it won't let me start a new paragraph. Thanks for any advice you can offer. Sue

Wow. I am sorry to hear about the band. I wondered what the symptoms where to band erosion. I heard that is rare though. Did they tell you what they think may have caused it?

No other symptoms other than increase in appetite? What about soreness when swallowing or severe reflux....

I'm always curious, and want to be educated concerning these things...to look out for them.

Also, how long have you been banded?

Terrible news!!! So sorry to hear about your band. I hope everything turns out well.

Sue I'm so sorry to hear that your band has eroded. When I was leaking, my dr suspected a leak or erosion. He too said erosion can happen with no symptoms except the ability to eat more and loss of restriction. I'm truly sorry to hear, my friend.

I don't have any answers for you regarding what happens after but wanted to send you good wishes for the removal and the repair.

Thanks for the good wishes everyone. I truly had no symptoms other than being able to eat a lot more and subsequent weight gain. I had a renewed effort and had three or four fills in a very short period and still didn't feel any restriction. My surgeon did a barium swallow and when he made me drink the barium three times I knew something was up. His staff scheduled me for endoscopy. When I woke from the endoscopy I knew there was a problem because they left some pictures on the table next to me. It really is shocking to see that stomach acid can turn that band from white to black. Ewwwww. So, we'll see how this goes. I'm guessing I won't be a candidate for ever getting another band because I've already had two. I just have to get my butt in gear and exercise. From 6/21 to now I've lost 9 pounds, so that's a great start. I don't know how the band eroded. It certainly was never too tight for me. On 12/24/12 I had oral surgery and had a lot of vomiting afterwards, but I never had pain. Would have been hard to tell if my band was different then because of the oral surgery I was eating only soft foods. So, I'm really guessing that it happened then. Again, thanks for the good wishes.

Sue, I'm sorry to hear you will be losing your band, but wanted to say THANK YOU for posting this. I too, have concerns for the longevity of my band and try and learn from longer banded patients. Not that I have any symptoms or problems now, but it's always possible.

Would you mind sharing what your doctors seen on the fluoroscopy/barium swallow to indicate the need for the endoscopy? Does the contrast liquid actually go around the outside of the band? Were you gradually able to eat more, or was it sudden?

Again, thanks for posting and educating me about this concern. I wish you a speedy recovery and much success moving forward.

SorryHellHe

No other symptoms other than increase in appetite? What about soreness when swallowing or severe reflux....

I'm always curious, and want to be educated concerning these things...to look out for them.

Also, how long have you been banded?

Hello: I got my first band 7/26/07, slipped and replaced on 7/23/10 with larger band. So, I've been banded 6 years now. I don't know what doctor saw on barium swallow because I didn't ask. He told me he wanted to do the test because I should have started to feel some change from all of the recent fills and I wasn't. I really don't know what caused it. It was gradual that I was able to eat more and more and more. If I was a better bandster I would have brought it to his attention as soon as I'd gained10 pounds, but I didn't. I've almost always had reflux issues, except for when I was at my lowest weight. So, didn't seem to be much different to me. However, I do think that I was having more reflux issues. Again, thanks for your well wishes. I'll let you know how it goes after I'm on the other (unbanded) side. Take care. Sue

So sorry to hear that Sue

Good luck tomorrow. Any talk of revision to a sleeve or Plication?

Hello: No talk about anything but removal and repairing my stomach at this point. I'll figure out if I need another surgery and consider it after 6 months to heal. I won't get another band! I would consider sleeve, but not interested in full gastric bypass. We'll see what happens. Like I said above, I've lost 9 pounds in just over a month with my band not working, so I know that I can do it! I just want to get below 200 again! Again, thanks for the good wishes. Sue

Update.... Home resting now. It was much harder than just having the band put in. Could just be me though because I have such nausea issues. They give me everything they can for the nausea, but it's still bad. I had the band removed on Tuesday morning. I stopped the intravenous pain med on Wednesday because it just makes the nausea return. I can live with pain in my tummy when I'm not making it have dry heaves. Good news is that doctor said there was very little scarring. I have zippo energy now, but know that's why they suggest staying out of work for 2 weeks after you get home from hospital. So, I'm bandless, and a little bit lonesome without it. I'm one of the few that have erosion cause band removal. The percentage is very low and it is a risk that was worth taking. Take care.

I'm sorry that the removal is so tough on you Sue. Opiates make me very nauseous as well and like you I'd rather bear the pain than have to contend with dry heaving.

I hope you recover soon, Sue. I've had you in my thoughts just lately.

I have a friend who had his removed this week due to erosion. Said the same thing, no symptoms at all except he could eat a lot more. He almost never got stuck or had GERD. No tummy aches. Just a big appetite. Crazy!!!

I'm glad you made it through okay. I hope you heal well and feel better really quickly.

Two friends of mine who used to post here regularly just had their bands removed due to erosion, as well. One was worse than the other- one was able to revise to VSG, the other wasn't.

Best to you. Feel better soon.

My band was put in 10/2006 and I had no problems and lost a great deal of weight, 117 lbs total. I had been maintaining for a couple of years and was very pleased with my results. Then in October of 2013 I was having some slight discomfort under my rib cage. Motrin helped with the discomfort, then the pain went away, just last week the pain came back and on a hunch my Nurse Practicioner ordered a CT scan and that's when it was discovered that my band had migrated into my stomach. My bariatric surgeon called me two days later (after he got the results) and had me come in to go over my options. Surgery is the only choice and then he thinks I will need to wait a minimum of 6 months before I can consider either the gastric sleeve or the bypass, of course providing there are no complications. Also, like Sue I have had no symptoms other than the discomfort (like a strained muscle), and the appetite increase, and no feeling of restriction. I was at 11cc in my band and frustrated that I kept gaining weight.

My band is coming out on 3/11/2014 and then the countdown begins towards healing and then hopefully I'll be able to get the gastric sleeve.

It is nice to see that some others out there have experienced this as well, and though all the research I did plus talking with my doctor states it is rare but it does happen. My thought was Why did it have to be me?