:help:

Hi Everyone,

I havent been here in a while and I hate to rain on folks parade, but I am seriously contemplating having my band removed and having revision surgery to something else. My first two years of banding, I was very successful. I started with a BMI of 54 and managed to get down to a 28 BMI which equates to a loss of 155 pounds. After two years, I quit smoking to have plastic surgery and gained 13 pounds. I had plastic surgery in August 2005 and left the hospital at 189 lbs. MY lowest weight was 180 ever from a start of 334 lbs.

During my plastic surgery, the saline was accidently removed from my band by the plastic surgeon. My problems started before this with lack of restriction, so I dont want to say this was the cause of all my issues with lack of restriction, but I am sure that this was a contributor. A month later, I visited my original band surgeon to get my restriction back and was informed my band was bone dry. I was given 1 cc and sent home and told to wait a few months and he would up it back to the 2.5 I had before. He wanted to do it slowly since normally patients who have their bands refilled usually need less than before to achieve the same level of restriction. I was worried about regain and told to just comply and keep portions small. Two months later, I now have gained an additional 10-15 pounds, so I go to get a fill from a doc in Dallas who takes me to 2.25. THings are fine for a short while and then I start losing restriction. By August 06, I have now gained 38 lbs. I go back for another fill and I am told I have pouch dilation. All the fill was removed from my band and I am put on a liquid diet for a month. I go to a lapband surgeon who was not my original surgeon due to insurance change and he tells me that I have a concentric slip, partial prolapse and that I will need a new band. I go for a second opinion with another band surgeon who does an endoscopy, tells me that although my pouch is a little large, I dont need a new band though and refills me to 2.00 CC.

One year later: I am still gaining weight. I have moved to GA and no one here will take me as a patient because they did not band me. My new insurance does not cover my band at all, nor will they cover a removal or revision. I will have to pay for fills. This is not a problem, but I am reluctant to start again here and have someone fill me and then have dilation or slippage problems due to a too tight band. I fear I have dilation issues again and getting another fill wont help me anyway and a saline removal will just result in starting the process all over again. I am not looking for someone to just do a fill. I am looking for a doc who can tell me if my band is fine and I am looking for someone who can really take care of me due to the fact that I have had problems in the past. It never ceases to amaze me that the docs here have no interest in me as a patient because someone else banded me, only want cash for fills or that my new insurance wont pay for a removal, but they will pay for me to have a gastric bypass. I am not obese enough for this to be an option anyway and my provider is notoriiously bad at making people jump through hoops to qualify anyway. I dont have comorbidites and my BMI is not high enough anyway. I am obese but not obese enough with a 34-35 bmi.

I am really sad that my band is not working for me. I have had 14 fills and several unfills. I am tired of trying. I also refuse to blame myself. I have been compliant and clearly I have the ability to stick to the plan when I have good restriction. Its like the cart before the horse. Some folks here might say the the dilation was caused by my overeating. THis would be partially true because to gain weight, you have to be eating too much. But if one does not have the ability to overeat with a properly working band then they cannot overeat. I make healthy choices, but I dont have any restriction and can eat a very big portion. Its easy to say only eat 3-4 ounces when you have restriction, but when you dont, then its a problem. So then one would say the solution is to get more fill. What if everytime you were filled, it was either too little or too much with really small increments? The most I have ever had in my band was 2.6 and this was too tight. The 2:00 I have now is too little. I have been at 2;25, 2.3 2.4, 2.5 and these amounts have resulted in too little or too much. All were done with flouroscopy. I dont have a leak, but clearly dilation is an issue and has been in the past. I am really sad and worried that if I get a fill and its too tight, then I will have to go for more fills and unfills at my own expense. Worse, if I had a medical emergency that required band removal, it would be at my own expense. I feel like maybe its time to move on. I am now considering the gastric sleeve and removal of my band as a self pay. No post op hassles, no maintenance, no fills . Whaddya yall think?? I would love to hear from newbies and oldies.

Babs in GA

334/180/225?

Hey there Babs: Glad to hear from you. Sorry for all your issues. My insurance stated they would not pay for the removal either when I had erosion but the doc coded it as an emergency and the insurance paid all but $1000 of the procedure. I think your insurance would cover it if it was deemed an emergency. Just a thought.

I am very concerned about your band health. When they did the endoscopy did the person doing the procedure know to look for erosion? Just a thought. Mine wasn't easy to spot since it was under the lip where the band is placed. The doc had to turn the scope around and look back at itself to diagnose the erosion.

I too have thought about the sleeve. My band doc won't do the procedure because he considers it half a surgery. I would want that one over the bypass myself.

I know it is frustrating to go through all this. And to have gained some of your weight back is even more frustrating. I can relate.

Have you called Inamed to get some recommendations for surgeons? They might be able to at least give you a list.

HUGS

Hi Penni,

Nice to hear from you again. The surgeon who did my endoscopy is a lapband surgeon in Dallas. He has lots of experience scoping. Didnt see anything but a slightly larger than normal pouch. I am not worried about the cost of fills . I am worried about finding a long term doc here locally that isnt going to sink me with expenses since insurance wont pay for it. I have a lot of thinking to do.... I still am consdering the sleeve.

Hugs,

Babs

If you want to do the sleeve, don't wait until you are experiencing symptoms of stomach inflammation. I had a pretty severe erosion and they would not convert me to a VSG at the time I had my band removed because my stomach and esophagus were severely inflamed. Now, my health is greatly improved, enough that I can do the sleeve but I was hoping I could keep my weight stable without a 2nd surgery. Unfortunately I'm having trouble with weight gain since being disbanded, despite my best efforts. I know how you feel with the frustration of really trying hard and not getting the results you deserve.

Sounds to me like getting a revision to a VSG would be a good way for you to go, just don't wait to decide and find out they can't do it until you heal from the band removal. I definitely stuck my head in the sand and didn't face up to the fact that my band was gradually going bad until things got really, really bad.

I go to a great doc in Georgia who I am sure sees patients who have been banded by other docs. Depends on what part of GA you are in, but they are located in Dalton. Dr. Steven Paynter is my doc and the other two are Dr. Jaime Ponce and Dr. Rick Fromm. Dr. Ponce was one of a handfull of surgeons who participated in the FDA trials to get the Band approved in the United States. They also have a Chattanooga office in TN. Their number is 423 899 1000 and I'm sure they will be glad to give you info on the Dalton, GA office as well.