Hello All,

I am fairly new at posting here, so bare with me. Originally I posted my question in a different group not realizing their was one just for complications-so I am reposting my question. Anyways, I am 4 1/2 months post op and I have a leak. I have had 5 fills and never had restriction. My surgeon was aware of this. I assumed I just needed to know what my new "full" felt like and have measured and drank a lot of Protein. Yes, I have managed to lose a lot of weight; however, knowing that I have a leak this early confuses and scares me. I have stuck to the diet and the protein out of fear of having a complication, but here I am. (yes, a risk I took having the surgery) I was a self pay and if I have to get this fixed, by surgery, it would have to be out of pocket again. Has anyone had any experiences with leaks, know what can causes them (obviously a needle can), how to prevent them, and how do they fix them. I do not do well with surgery so the thought of a second scares me, but what scares me even more is the thought of continuing my journey without my buddy-my band. :sneaky:

Melissa,

My doctor regularly solves this issue by injecting a contrast medium called Omnipaque into the band. It's thicker and so less likely to leak. He has done this for many years without complication and it works like a charm. It worked for me.

The way he explained these small leaks is like air leaking from a balloon...there's not any one spot that can be 'fixed'...you just need thicker 'air'. You might want to ask your doctor about this possibility...or even put him in contact with Dr. Hadar Spivak in Houston. He is one of the most experienced LB doctors in the country, being involved from the beginning with the FDA trials, then proctoring doctors after that.

In addition, you may want to do a search for 'omnipaque' here on this board...there are more than a few that are filled with it.