Leaking LapBand - LONG... Sorry...

[sassaay 1]

Hello Friends,

I have been mostly been lurking for months now. I check in almost daily to:

-- See how everyone is doing.

-- Check out all the new people joining this wonderful forum.

-- And on occasion participate in the discussions

I guess I have been feeling very frustrated at my progress. It is a similar story to some I am sure, trying to get to a decent level of restriction so that I can start losing again and pick up where I left off after my initial 14lb weight loss… all of which I might add came right after surgery and has wavered back and forth between the same 2-3 lbs since Feb. ’04. I know, I know… many have gone through the same thing. :cry :cry :cry

BUT, now I am crawling back and asking all of you for the wonderful support you gave me in the beginning when things weren’t quite going my way with my insurance company. I know you all don’t hold grudges (I hope;) ) … I need to snap out of this and get back to this ‘journey’ and once again participate in this FAB forum and enjoy my great online friends. :D

So, here is the deal. I have had 5 fills and each was 6 weeks apart except for the last 2. With each of my first 3 fills, I would lose restriction by week 3 and when the doc would try to pull out the fill she put in 6 weeks ago, she could only get .2 - .4 back out. She suspected a leak. Well, all of that appears to have been confirmed today. I had a fill with the contrast solution under Floro and we had hoped the leak would be at the port site (less of an issue to repair, less pain, less evasive, etc.)… BUT, NOOOOO! My leak is right at the band site!!! You could see swirling lines of the contrast solution floating around the band on the film. My doc is now contacting Inamed because she thinks it is a defective band and I will have to have it replaced. Waiting now for more word on what’s next.

On the way home from the hospital, I started to wonder if maybe my body is trying to ‘attack’ the band and this is why I have a leak. Has anyone heard of such a thing? Can this lead to erosion if the band ‘wins’?

I promise to participate more. All of you have been so helpful to me and I want to feel more a part of the group.

Thanks (as always) for listening.

[Rebeccalee 2]

So sorry to hear about your leak! I'm glad they finally found it. This must have been a very frustrating year! I hope the process goes quickly and you are back on the losing track soon.

[Alexandra 55]

Anne, honey, I'm so sorry about your travails! The good news is that now you know it wasn't in your head, that the band really was leaking and it wasn't your imagination that you were losing restriction. And what's broken can be fixed, even though it means another surgery.

We're here for you, no problem. Come back and vent any time! I hope Inamed does the right thing by you and picks up the costs for your replacement.

Hugs, Anne...this too shall pass and everything will be just fine and dandy.

[Vera 7]

Me Too! Sorry to hear about your leak, but Your doctor found it, and you know what's wrong.

I do NOT think your rejecting or your body is trying to ‘attack’ the band.

Do not let your doctor slow your process, lead you on or ignore the situation. Try to push to get this fixed ASAP. Contact Inamed personally and document everything.

Please keep us posted.

[hagerteresa 3]

Hi Anne,

I too feel terrible for you and hope all improves with a happy ending. How awful that this happened. I love my band but like most people fear on a daily basis about any one of the few problems we can have. At least you found the problem and hopefully Inamed takes responsibilty. Please, please keep us posted and we would all love to have you participate more, best wishes, Teresa

[donali 57]

Hi Anne!!

Chin up, girl! Isn't it wonderful to know that all this time it really WASN'T your fault?!?!

I am sure that your leak was NOT caused by your body trying to reject the band. Either they did not connect it properly when it was installed, or the connection was faulty.

Once you get a properly working band, you'll be back on the road!

I am so very truly sorry for all the frustration and anxiety this must have caused you. But now that's in the past.

Best wishes on a speedy recovery from your rebanding!

[La_madam 20]

I'm sorryto hear of your leak..but your doctor found it and you now have anwsers as to why you werent losing so that should be some what of a relief at least you know its not you and anything you have done. Contact Inamed personally and alos tell them what has happened, they will help you

The anxiety and frustration will all go away once you get all fixed up .You will be losing again in no time. Hang in there!

[Debra 0]

{{{{Anne}}}}

So sorry to hear about the leak! I'm glad you came back here to get support thou! We are all here for you! Chin up! At least the problem has been found and you are on the road to repair!

[sassaay 1]

Good day Friends,

Thank you so much for your support hugs and well wishes. It means so much to know that there are others who know exactly how I am feeling.

Rebecca – My hope is that the rest of the year will go more in my favor, but thanks to the positive support I get on this forum… I think I can make it through anything.

Alex – Thanks for helping me see the positive side. You are so right, now I know that it wasn’t something I was doing wrong.

Vera – Great advise about contacting Inamed myself and documenting everything. I never thought about that, but I will start working on that right away.

Donali – You are my hero! You have been so strong and positive over the last month. My goal is to stay at least ½ as positive as you. I would go for 100%, but I think your track record will be hard to equal.

Michelle & Debra – Thank you. Just knowing that I can follow others journeys with the Lap-Band gives me a feeling of comfort.

I feel much better today and will try to stay positive and move through this as quickly and effortlessly as possible.

Thanks again.

[leatha_g 4]

Inamed does actually HAVE to document any defective device. Your doctor should have recorded the serial # and tracked it in your operative record.

don.mills@inamed.com is customer representative. he's very good to answer questions.

[sassaay 1]

Thank you Leatha. I will contact Don at Inamed.

[New Hope 37]

Anne, you're such a cutey! I'm so glad that you found out what the problem was. How frustrating! You'll really take off now!

[bbrecruiter2000 1]

Hi Anne,

I am sorry to hear about the leak, but hopefully you wont have to worry about any cost associated with a replacement. Please let us know what happens.

Babs in TX

334/208/170

-126

[sassaay 1]

Thanks Marie & Babs! I will definitely keep everyone in the loop regarding my leak and possible Band replacement.

My doc gave me a pretty good fill, so I am finally getting a good idea about how proper restriction feels. Maybe I can lose a couple more pounds over the next couple of weeks while I am working to get this all figured out.

Thanks again everyone:)

[claraluz 2]

Hi, Anne. I'm so sorry about your problem. I, too, had a leaking band. Now my fills are done with a solution that is a little thicker than saline and my band has held that fine. I don't know if this would work for you, but it might be worth a try. I don't remember what the name of the solution is either, but if you are interested, I can call my doctor's office to find out.

Nancy