Beverly Carroll

I had my lap band placed 2009 and had relatively good success with the weight loss until 5 years anniversary. Once I hit 5 years I began to regain the weight and had considered having my lap band removed to convert to gastric bypass, that decision changed my life. This is my removal story,I recently had my band removed with the idea of going back later for a gastric bypass. The removal was 9/12/14, procedure supposedly went as planned and I was sent home the next day. The following days were nothing but misery for me. I could not seem to gain any type of energy, I slept almost non-stop and could barely eat anything without nausea or just not hungry. I had no appetite. On 9/14/2014 I started running a fever and had swelling in the lower part of my abdomen with tenderness particularly around the larger incision site where the trocar with the camera was placed. I called my doctors office and went in 9/15/2014 to see his PA, she checked site and noted the issue. She sent me home with antibiotics and told me to contact her if symptoms got worse. On 9/16/2014 in the evening, that large site that had the swelling dehisenced and this horrible smelling fluid came out. My husband took me to the emergency room where I was immediately taken back and put in a room. I had a fever, my BP was 85/47 and when the lab results came back my potassium was 2.6 (Normal range is 3.5-5). I was in danger of going into heart failure. They began running all kinds of fluids to hydrate me and a potassium drip. I had a CT scan that showed I had an esophageal leak and the gastric fluids were pooling in my lower abdomen making me septic. The trauma surgeon on-call came into the ER and opened my incision further and it was packed. Then I was transferred to SICU for close monitoring. My surgeon came in the next morning and confirmed that I did have leak and would need to go back to the OR for a second surgery to repair the leak. He stated to me that he had missed the leak in the first surgery and had not done a ECG that would have shown the leak. I was appreciative that he admitted his mistake but it doesn't take away the pain and additional surgery. I went back to surgery 9/17/2014, he repaired the leak, put in feeding tube and additional drain, plus left wound open to be wet to dry packed for the next 6 weeks! I stayed a total of 7 days in the hospital, 3 in the SICU and 4 on the floor. An then went home on home care, where a nurse comes in 2 times a week to check my vitals and change the dressing. My husband ( God Bless him!) has been doing daily wet to dry dressing changes of my wound twice a day for the last 4 weeks and I went approximately 4 weeks with nothing by mouth. Feeding tube only. Mind you I've lost 13 lbs but this is not the way I would wish on anyone. The surgeon mentioned at the last visit that this complication did not mean we had burnt the bridge but I could still have a the gastric bypass later down the road. I told him thanks but no thanks my weight loss journey will not include anymore surgery and once I'm recovered, that I'll go it on my own with diet moderation and exercise. I've lost 6  weeks of work, had to go on FMLA, lost over $800 of my pay, had to use my own vacation time and been home bond for all this time. I wish everyone luck with your choices but mine time with the land was not fun! I did initially lose 72 lbs but had started to gain it back and who knows how long I had the esophageal erosion? Thanks for this forum to expressing my story. Think hard on your options! I almost lost my life to mine   :(ss.