Okay,

I am new here. I was banded in August 2004 in Mexico by Dr. Lopez. I had believed that after a year of research that I had found a great doctor. Now I am not so sure. I have read the thread that so many of you have responded to about the puncture of a patients stomach. I just got back from Dr. Lopez's office last week. I went and received a fill. This time they found that my port has shifted and is not laying flat. Does this happen often? Is this a kinda normal thing? With everything I have read tonight (it is 2 in the morning here in CA) I am very worried. Maybe it is my own imagination, but my port is pertruding a bit more than usual tonight and it feels uncomfortable. I am not in major pain, it just feels odd. I know that if I eat too much, the saline tends to go back through the tube a bit and makes my port feel this way, but now I wonder if it is more than that. I am only 15 pounds or so from goal. Can this be because of my body shifting (shrinking) from weight loss? Please help me. I can't believe that just a few minutes ago I felt like I had the greatest doctor in the world, and now my world is upside down

prettyone

I sent you a PM

Thank you Penni,

Please, anyone else with info or an idea of what I should do next please respond. I feel like I am going out of my mind.

prettyone

You know it is very easy for us to compare are symptoms to what is on line. Usually yes we are right on and the solutions are simple. But then there are the other ones that send us into a panic mode, these are the ones to watch out for. I am guilty of this as well. But give your doc a call and ask him what he thinks. I have heard that when you have lost alot of weight yes your port is going to protrude and look funny and worse yet is when you think something is wrong with it. I have also read where ports have moved and need to be put back in place without affecting the band.

Is the thread your reading about Jessica O by chance?? If so She had RNY and had to go in after having complications. I have not seen one regarding a Bandster.

Hope you mind is a little more at ease..

I would get a second opinion immediately. Lopez did my original surgery. Kuri removed my original port a month later due to severe infection. Lopez put another port in 8 months later. Dr. Billy removed the 2nd port due to severe infection.

Lopez is really nice, but the first time around he and his staff ignored my infection, and the second time around he misdiagnosed me.

See another doctor as soon as you can, okay?

DeLarla,

Did you have any symptoms? I haven't had any symptoms of anything wrong. Just a bit of protrusion. I was under the impression that protrusion is to be expected when you lose as much weight as I have. I am quite thin in that area now. I am going to call Dr. Billy's office this coming Monday. I would just like to have everything checked out before I continue to panic or something gets out of hand with my health.

Thanks,

prettyone

Hi PrettyOne -

Any updates on your port? How are you doing? I don't see any posts from you since your first day, and hoping all is well in your neck of the woods.

Thank you for asking.

I am very satisfied with my experience with Dr. Lopez. I know that this site seems to be very anti Dr. Lopez. But I have been checked out and I have also been in contact with many other clients of his, and we are all quite happy.

I get the feeling that because a few on this board are extremely verbal about their experiences, that many people are being turned off to the possibility of checking into him as a viable choice.

I hurt for those ladies, but I still can't get around the fact that on this board alone, sooooo many seem to put down just him, and no one others. I have been reading the threads, and those who speak up with some kind of logical thinking are put down for speaking up.

This really does look like a board run by people with an alteriar motive.

I even notice that some doctors are purposefully give threads of advertisement.

prettyone

This really does look like a board run by people with an alteriar motive.

I even notice that some doctors are purposefully give threads of advertisement

Prettyone, what Dr. might that be that you are referring to? I'm curious because the moderators here need to be aware of it if that is truly the case and take care of the situation

That's my point. They do know about it and allowed it to stay. They even commented on it themselves. Yet, a thread that is vindictive and slanderous continues for such a long time and no one ever gives a bit of evidence to support their accusations! They themselves (moderators, in my opinion they are more like coordinators for other doctors) keep the emotions high on a thread that just scares people and shows no sign of ever allowing intelligent responses to be posted without one of them replying rudely.

Prettyone

An absolute defense to slander is truth. If something is true, it is not slander. It may be hurtful....but not slander. If these are the true experiences of these ladies, they are not being slanderous.

That's my point. They do know about it and allowed it to stay. They even commented on it themselves. Yet, a thread that is vindictive and slanderous continues for such a long time and no one ever gives a bit of evidence to support their accusations! They themselves (moderators, in my opinion they are more like coordinators for other doctors) keep the emotions high on a thread that just scares people and shows no sign of ever allowing intelligent responses to be posted without one of them replying rudely.

Prettyone

Hmm, I think I missed that thread. Could you please bump it? I don't recall any thread that promotes a specific doc. I do know that a while back someone posted that they were available to do fills in... Vegas? That thread was I believe locked and a note was placed explaining why it was locked.

Sorry you feel like your doc is being slandered. Not sure what you mean by giving evidence. The Pix of Delarla's last port removal were pretty grafic and pretty darn specific. Not for the weak of knees... Other poeple have posted their experiences, both good and, well, really bad.

And yes, you are absolutely correct that there are chances for complications from any doctor, procedure and action. But often anicdotal eveidence is collected before any study is done. I don't care what the subject is whether we are looking at something like complication rates of a particular doctor or at strange network behavior.

Often times the collection of anicdotal evidence is the impedis for a more formal study of a particular practice. For instance, I recently completed an analysis of computer trouble tickets that started out as anicdotal problems, and I was able to correlate a specific geographic location as being the locus of the trouble. The process in question is being changed to improve the situation. But it started out with anicdotal evidence.

I personally think it is vital for people to hear about other people's experiences, the good, the bad, the indifferent.

Words written down are so subjective. It is an art to be able to convey exactly the right emotion and meaning, and yet still words are open to interpretation. If you've ever take a literature class or a poetry apprication class you will understand what I am trying to say. Your own experiences will color everything you touch or read, and so sometimes you will read something that was not intended, or miss something was the writer felt was crutial. I do not mean this as You, Prettyone specifically, but more the universial you.

I'm sorry you feel that the moderators are acting as shills, or are trying to keep things in termoil. I have not read anything that would cause me to come to the same conclusions, but again, my experiences color my perceptions.

This really does look like a board run by people with an alteriar motive.

I even notice that some doctors are purposefully give threads of advertisement.

prettyone

As one of the moderators, I would like to be made aware of what specific thread you are referring to. Can you please provide the name of the thread?

Prettyone, when you accused people of being vindictive and on a witch-hunt against Lopez, were you referring to me?

They themselves (moderators, in my opinion they are more like coordinators for other doctors) keep the emotions high on a thread that just scares people and shows no sign of ever allowing intelligent responses to be posted without one of them replying rudely.

Yes this may be the case on theYahoo boards but I can assure you that each and everyone of the moderators on this board do not work for any Dr's and that is a fact! I'm not even a moderator and I know it to be true. Once you are here long enough youwill see for yourself that none of the moderators here work for any Dr.

Hell one of the moderators here doesnt even like her original Dr!

I have had the opportunity to email personally back and forth with

Penni60.

I do believe that the comment made about perceptions is very relative to this situation. That is why I for one would agree that the thread needs to go, but I have digressed.

Penni has only written to me in the kindest manner. I wish I knew how to post our emails on here, but alas I do not have any computer knowledge.

I can not locate the thread anylonger of which I was reffering. It must have been the one mentioned as locked. That above all makes me feel good.

DeLarla,

I am not reffering to one person in general, but the overall emotion coming from the thread. it really doesn't allow for anything but panic amongst newbies. Maybe there is room for that to be okay for a short while, but I personally disagree with allowing it to go on for months. It pains me to think of anyone going through the difficulty you ladies have, yet keeping it up month after month does not seem to allow those of us with good experiences to feel welcome to comment. Just the idea that I or someone else would say good things with those stories up seems virtually impossible.

Now I am not sure if I am making any sense. lol

Well, if nothing else this has maybe opened up the possibility for dialog here. The way this site is set up is very different than other sites I have "lurked". This thread stays up with the alarming and highly charged title for everyone to see the moment they come on the site.

Thank you for all of you (well, I know I ruffled some feathers, sorry) who responded so elequently to my post. I appreciate it.

prettyone