itsyvonne

These episodes were filmed in the summer...and she was in the recent Victoria's Secret fashion show which I assume was filmed more recently...and she definitely didn't appear pregnant.

Hey, you are in the wrong forum! This is not a Lap-Band complication ... this belongs in the forum entitled "What you can expect with the Lap-Band." You are NORMAL. Chill. It usually takes AT LEAST 2 or 3 fills to get to the point of being restricted ... longer if you've got a bigger band.

Sounds like you are managing it well now. The only other suggestion I would have is to try full liquids (no solids) until surgery, if you can't move the date of surgery sooner!!! The cough could be symptoms of reflux...so I think you're still suffering and I wish you could move your surgery date sooner. I didn't have nearly as terrible symptoms as you did, yet my surgeon cleared his schedule to replace my slipped band within a week after he saw my upper GI. He didn't really think there was an option to wait. Good luck...take care.

Well, I don't have any comment about the quality of care in Mexico, but I know in Kansas it is no longer worth going to Mexico because the cost of getting the band plus 1 year follow-up is about $11,000.

As far as I know, it would be an EXTREMELY UNLIKELY event for the band to slip UPwards. I don't know if it is even possible when the correct surgical technique (e.g., Pars flaccida) is used. You could feel like you have less restriction with it slipping DOWN, because your stomach would be able to hold more food. However, typically, you would also have other symptoms, like reflux due to the inefficient emptying of your stomach... Maybe you have a leak and you lost saline because of that. Anyway, I hate to speculate too much ... you need to get to the bottom of this with your doctor. Please keep us updated! -Yvonne

Well, I hope your band didn't slip and you simply need more saline! Usually slippage does not cause you to lose restriction - in fact, it's usually the opposite (increased restriction, reflux, etc.).

Well, the stitch prevents the band from slipping DOWN. I just wondered what the medial side is ... sounds like "middle" to me, but that's not really a "side," so I'm confused. -Yvonne

Do you mean local anaesthetic? I think it is a fairly minor procedure ... but if you are worried, definitely ask the doctor for more details!

I have new info direct from my surgeon regarding this special stitch. The stitch is below the band on the medial side. She said that most who are using the Inamed band are teaching this technique. There is not an official name, but they call it the transfixion stitch. P.S. What is the "Medial" side of the stomach?

I believe that what Melody describes is way beyond something that can be solved w/dietary changes and/or medications. Going to the length of purging on a nightly basis is a big red flag. I hope she gets herself to the doctor for an upper GI as soon as possible.

My understanding is that the anterior slip is normally what people mean when they talk about slippage symptoms nowadays, and that the posterior slip is pretty much nonexistant since the pars flaccida technique became routine (since about 2002). Your symptoms don't sound typical of slippage. I saw you posted you had an upper GI recently and you were told you have a leak. Is that still the case?

What a horrible problem to have. I know how I felt w/my first band - like life was unfair that I should be cursed with reflux and unable to get adequate restriction because of the reflux. This problem seems similarly aggravating (but worse in terms of what you have had to suffer)! I hope you find a resolution. Take care, Yvonne

I had trouble as soon as I got restriction (third fill - about 4 mos. into banding). That's when I started getting reflux. I had a slight unfill, which helped. Then the problem came back ... eventually got so miserable that I had a complete unfill. Had a respite for a few months (no fills), then started having problems again even though my band was completely unfilled. I think that is when my band slipped - or the slip worsened. I tried to put up w/the problems for several months, eventually got so bad that I had an upper GI and discovered the slippage. I then had my band replaced at 2.5 years post-op first band. I think that my band probably slipped slightly early on, and then just worsened over time - but it's hard to say for sure why I had so much trouble w/my first band (Midband - placed by Dr. Frering in France). I have had no trouble w/my current band (9.75 cm Lap-band), and I'm 2 years post-op on my second band.

I've never understood that asparagus warning in the book ... I eat it regularly...it doesn't cause any problems for me. Salmon on the other hand - I had one of the worst PB's EVER with salmon. Just a lone cry in the wilderness in support of asparagus.

Melody - your symptoms are *exactly* like the symptoms I had when my band slipped. I got into that same pattern you describe (purging before bed). The reason it can feel like you have no restriction is the prolapsed stomach - a large part of the stomach is above the band. You can eat a lot at one time, but it doesn't go down very efficiently and comes back up at night in the form of reflux. I recommend you get an upper GI done to rule out slippage. I lived with it for at least 6 months before finally getting checked...so I know that slippage can have deceiving symptoms. It never even occurred to me that my band could be slipped until I had the upper GI (and was told point blank)!

What is spasming? Your esophagus or your stomach? I have read of esophageal spasms happening to another bandster, but it didn't happen to her until she was filled to a point that was too much for her. She got a complete unfill, then gradually got filled to a point lower than where she got spasms, and has been fine. It's disturbing that you are having this with NO fill. How can they be sure that a larger band wouldn't help alleviate this?

I had reflux with my first band. The band eventually slipped at 2.5 years post-op. I have not any reflux with my second band (now 2 yrs post-op).

What size band do you have? 9.75cm? 10cm? VG band? Which one? If the band implanted was not sized too small for you, then I think there may be something wrong with the placement that is not evident in an upper GI. Maybe the only solution is to do exploratory surgery to see what's up with it. Your symptoms are just not normal, so I don't think the upper GI/Barium swallow is telling the real story. Barium swallows can be deceiving - e.g., I've read about situations where a Barium swallow shows excellent restriction, but the patient can eat a foot-long sub.

Sorry for my late response to this - I did not check this thread after I posted. Ok - now that I think about it - it wouldn't make sense for the stitch to be ABOVE the band - so it must be BELOW the band. Is this a technique that is routinely performed nowadays? By the way, does the Pars Flaccida technique ONLY prevent POSTERIOR slippage, or does it contribute to preventing ANTERIOR slippage as well? Do you ever see posterior slippages anymore with the Pars Flaccida technique? Thanks, Yvonne

JohnnyMobs - Have you heard of the technique of placing a stitch (or stitches) to form a "bump" on the anterior side of the stomach right above the band? It doesn't actually affix the band to the stomach on that side, but it provides a sort of barrier to help prevent anterior slippage. My surgeon used this technique on me - she learned it from Dr. Ponce in Georgia.

Just remember that all the hype about a new band and how it will be "better" is just that - hype. Long-term statistics are needed to make any sorts of realistic comparisons. Hey, in 2002 I had the latest, greatest band (the MidBand) which supposedly had less chance of slippage than the LapBand. Long story short - my Midband slipped and I now have a LapBand.

Anyone with a port infection should probably get checked for erosion since it has been noted that people with erosion frequently had port infections (although I am not sure if the reverse is true). Here is a quote I found from Dr. Ortiz on this forum:

I've been doing it about 2x a month ... almost always when I eat too fast, especially towards the end of a meal. I should be more careful, because I slipped my first band and I may thus be prone to slippage. My surgeon put a stitch to form a "bump" right above the band on the front side of my stomach to help prevent slippage w/my second band. This is a technique she learned from Dr. Ponce in Georgia. I hope it works because I have definitely put it to the test...

Everyone heals at a different rate. You may not bounce back as quickly as some of the others posting on this thread. I had a lot of pain in the area where the port was sewn to the muscle - that was the most difficult thing for me in terms of recovery. I could not sit up straight for very long because of that pain. I remember that the pain was bad enough that I called my surgeon at 10pm on day 4 post-op to ask if it was normal. He said it was normal (as long as I didn't have a fever), and after that it started getting better day by day. -Yvonne

Date Originally Banded: 17 July 2002 Country:France Doctor:Vincent Frering Band:Midband Eroded: No Slipped: Yes Date ReBanded: 9 May 2005 Country:USA Doctor:Brent Steward Band:9.75cm Lap-Band Eroded: No No complications so far...1yr & 4mos post-op