I got my lap band April of 2008. I immediately started loosing weight and had very little appetite, so of course, I was delighted. But as time went on, I could eat less and less, despite never receiving a fill. When I did eat, food would get stuck right in the spot the band was, and the food would come up. To overcome this, I ate extremely small portions of food in tiny pieces, or liquids only. In August of 2008, my gall bladder was removed by the same surgical staff that put the lap band in....side effect of loosing weight fast. They attributed my issues to the gall bladder. I insisted that food getting stuck and throwing up had nothing to do with my gall bladder since the pains were at different places (gall bladder right side vs. food sticking at the top of my stomach exactly where the band was). After August, I kept questioning my surgeon because I was feeling weak and at times would get dehydrated (at times I could not even keep Water down). I went back to the office several times a week and they assured me all was well and that what I was experiencing was "normal" and was "lucky" that I did not have to get a fill. But, I knew something was very wrong and had lost 90 pounds in 6 months with no fills. In October of 2008 on a Monday, I ended up in the emergency room with extreme dehydration (from not being able to keep anything down, including water) and was admitted in the hospital (DePaul in Bridgeton, MO). I had done some research and at this point consulted with other doctors, who told me that I needed an upper endoscopy. I talked to my doctors (the ones who had done the lap band and gall bladder surgeries) and told them again that there was something wrong with the band itself and I needed an upper endoscopy to figure it out. They did every test under the sun between Monday and Wednesday and could not diagnose the problem. Finally after much discussion and being on IVs only since Monday, they performed the upper endoscopy on Thursday morning. When I came to after the procedure, they were running me down the hallway of the hospital and told me that my lap band had actually ripped open my stomach and my stomach now had a "very large" hole in it. They were taking me to surgery to repair the hole and remove the band. I was in the operating room minutes later, and they awoke in recovery some time after. At that point, I had a discussion with the surgical nurse who told me that I was lucky that I kept throwing up because if food or water had gotten into my body cavity, that I could have died. The surgeon then scolded the nurse for telling me that, and then corrected her and said that this is a "normal complication" and I was just one of the unlucky ones that the lap band does not work on. I went through 6 months of hell, and so did my family. My mistake was consulting other doctors from the same practice, and not getting a second opinion from a completely different practice. The whole experience took an emotional tole on my family and myself. I reviewed all of the information received about the risks that lap band may present, and none of the materials given to me included the risk of the band tearing a hole in the stomach. I followed up several times with the doctors after the band came out and each and every time they were uncaring and aloof about my experience.
I am thrilled that the majority of folks have positive experiences with lap band, and wish you all continued success. I am sharing my story so that folks are aware of other outcomes and make informed decisions for themselves.