I was scheduled to get alot of test done on friday the 12th, so I did and everything was going very well until I got to the Endo...1st the doctor was not at the hosp yet, so I had to wait 1hr before we can begin. Then they said they were going to do it in the OR, which was a little weird to me but ok...So I get in the OR and the anesthesiologist wanted me to get on the small table and so I did and the doctor was like no we are going to do it on her bed, so I got back on the bed and the doc told me to turn on my side, so I did and the anest. said NO she needs to be on her back so I can intervate her. So I took the oxygen thing and I was out in seconds, well whn I came back around I was in recovery with nurses EVERYWHERE and the doc said the procedure is to risky to perform and I was in ALOT of pain...I was the same way I was whn I got in the OR so the procedure never begun. My tongue was cut almost in half on the right side and I couldnt talk or anything and they were giving me Tylenol thru the i.v for pain & my legs were hurting so bad I couldnt harldy move them...and I'm thinking the whole time WHAT HAPPENED TO ME? My mom came in later and said the doctor told her that my neck is to short and I got soft tissues in my neck so they couldnt intervate me, so if I was to stop breathing they would have to do a trac...wtf? My doctor said, I have done this surgery on people much bigger than you but your neck is to short...REALLY? Has anybody else ever heard of something like this? Now my doctor wants to try the procedure again at a different hosp...what really happened here?

I think my lawyer would be calling.

Intubation is tricky...the anesthesiologist probably attempted but backed off. not everyone is a good canidate for anesthesia. that said, it can be done, hopefully with an extrememely skilled team. i am sorry that you had to go through all of that for nothing..just pain and confusion. i hope you have a chance to meet with your team so you get answers. it is your right as a patient to know. keep pushing for the right doctors so your journey can start!!!! i hope you fell better today!

Sorry that happened. It is true that is hard to intubate people with short necks, it is the anatomy of placing the breathing tube into the airway that is at the front of your neck. So the tube has to go through you mouth, behind you tongue and then curve sharply forward to go into yoir airway instead of your esophagus. That curve behind the tongue is even more sharp in someone that has a short neck. I hope that description helps. The doctor has to make the call if it will cause you more harm than good when performing the procedure. It is not like humans are machines where all the parts are exactly the same.

The reason im so worried is because this procedure decides my destiny as far as the sleeve goes....but thank you for helping me to understand this better.

I agree with your doc... Different hospital with different anesthesiologist.

Every thread that someone has a problem, someone always mentions calling an attorney. no wonder healthcare in this country is so messed up.

Anyway, I am glad you are okay. Take a breath, you have a right to ask about what happened, understand it deeply so you can advocate for yourself. Not everyone is easy to intubate and maybe it is a good thing this happened since an endoscopy is a very low stakes way to find out how your body is going to need to be handled during actual surgery. (okay, maybe not a good thing,I am just trying to find the bright side here)

Scared the crap out of me that after my band removal the anesthesilogist left chart notes that said I had difficulty, but never told me and they weren't detailed enough for the next one to know what to make of it. It scared me, but i really appreciated that anesthethist #2 was professional enough to discuss it with me and describe the action plan in case things went bad. Of course, it was fine and he later told me he had no idea what the first one was talking about.... but i still appreciated the care and informing me of everything.

I wouldn't say call a Lawyer, but I would say to call your states Department of Health and ask for the Bureau of Hospital Standards. It is called a little something different in every state. But every state has a department that you can report hospitals too in cases where you feel things just didn't go right. They do not tell the hospital who called but the investigate complaints and see if it is a violation of hospital standards.

At the very least you can make an official complaint to the hospital - in writing- and they are required to do their own investigation into their procedures and respond to you.

I work in the Division of Regulation and Licensure for the State of Missouri. There are laws protecting the patient and making sure the hospital stays on their toes. Plus it does not effect the cost of healthcare, It is a system that is already in place in the state and hospital regulations.

Here is the link for your state:

http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/hfp/complain.shtm

I just spoke with the doctor and he said that my neck is short and fat and that is the reason that they had an issue, so of course my 1st ? was "HAS THIS HAPPENED BEFORE?" They said, yes so we have to find a person that is more experienced and have them to do the intubation. So I'm thinking if you haver had this problem before then why wouldnt u just have that anest. for the "fat neck" people instead of putting people thru this the 1st time? Anyway, they are looking for someone else to do this for me and then they will redo it. So the waiting game continues

So what happened to your tongue?? How on earth did they cut it?

The nurse said, she does not know...all she know is they said it was too difficult to intubate me and maybe it happened during that process. shrugs I kno 1 thing they can make that the new weight loss operation of the year...because with ur tongue cut u will NOT eat...lol

I'm so sorry this happened to you! I'm sure the next time it'll go much smoother.

Thank you Melissa1234, I hope so because this is not a good feeling...waiting AND cant eat...lol

So sorry sweetheart!

Go out to youtube and search for "intubation" you will fond many videos on the procedure. That will give you an idea of what happens. Basically the blade that has to be used to see where to put the tube can hurt the inside of your mouth. People can lose teeth that are loose or suffer cuts. Again I am sorry you are having to deal with this.