Band Slip - Unfill Absolutely Necessary?

[katschai 0]

Hi - just want some opinions. I am currently living outside of us. My band slipped. I know this because I had barium studies done very old fashion this country is like US in the 1960s. Nevertheless it shows band is about mid point around my stomach. Also able to eat a lot more. Does a slip always necessitate an unfil? There is a doc from the US here who called my surgeon and discussed options. Surgeon said unfil and deal with band when I return to US in a year. The US MD in country can do it he explained process to her.

Is there anything harmful about leavIng band where it is? Thanks for the advice !

[DELETE THIS ACCOUNT! 12,703]

Yes, it actually can be very harmful to leave your band where it is. It can go from being a slip to a full blown complication requiring removal. You don't don't want to mess with that.

[karewpah 173]

Kay, if your band is truly around the middle of your stomach I'd get an unfill right away. It sounds like it's quite likely that it will need to be moved back in place as that seems like a fairly large slip. You are likely able to eat more as the portion above your band is now much larger and can hold more in volume. On top of all of the, if the band is in the middle of your stomach, then it's not likely applying pressure to the vagus nerve which is what ( I believe) assists in acute ing the full feeling and keeping it with less food.

Of course your best first course of action is to see a barbaric surgeon with expire nice with the band.

I myself suffered from a slip over a year ago...not a fun experience...

[elcee 3,342]

It depends on where and how bad the slip is etc. From your message it sounds as though the band has slipped quite badly.

Normally the first course of action with a slip is to have a total unfill and see if the band goes back into place. Quite often, it does. If it doesn't then it needs to be fixed, removed or replaced. How urgent this is depends on a number of factors including your ability to eat and drink, whether you have reflux etc.

I think the best thing for you to do is have the unfill and keep in close contact with your Dr.You will need to be assessed regularly to make sure that the slip is not causing additional problems.

[marfar7 1,533]

My band slipped (minimally) about 6 mths ago. The dr took out about 1/2 of my 9.5cc fill. 4 weeks later, he started the slow refill process WITHOUT first doing a followup xray. He put 1cc in. No reflux, but also no restriction. 3 weeks later, he put another 1cc in. That nite the reflux started again. So I went back to the drs. An xray showed that it was indeed still slipped, never moved from where it was. He said that he treats according to my symptoms, not the xray. So he took out the previous 1cc he had put in and I was fine. Once in a while I have reflux when I sleep on my right side (no clue what the difference is on what side I sleep on). I have some restriction, not great and I'm able to eat more than previously.

Are you having any symptoms, besides being able to eat more? You're able to keep everything down (I was)? Any nighttime reflux? Nausea?

I'm seriously thinking of going on a post op liquid diet for a week or 2 to see if that helps with my restriction. Or maybe it help put my band back in place. Otherwise I'm going to have to start dieting (which I swore I'd never do again once I got my band) to lose the 16 lbs I've gained since the slip.

Depending on the severity of the slip (sometimes the only thing you can do is empty it and start over again or really severe slip you have to have surgery to reposition or replace it), you might be able to get away with just 1/2 emptying it and seeing if it pops back into place.

What country are you in, if you don't mind me asking?

Good luck!

Marci