Unprepared for this complication

[tammygRN 35]

Was sleeved in June. Surgery went well, first 2 weeks post op I was feeling good. But at 3 weeks out of the blue I started nausea and vomiting daily. I was hospitalized for dehydration and had an upper GI study done (leak test). No leak, but discovered that a pouch had formed at the top of my sleeve and all my nutrition went straight to the pouch and then my horrible reflux pushed it straight back up my esophagus. I will be post op week 5 tomorrow. I have spent a total of 12 days in the hospital the past 2 weeks for fluids and I am now on TPN for nutrition. The only way to fix the problem is to do a sleeve to rouxen-y conversion. The moral of this story is if you have reflux prior to WLS, don't get the sleeve. I thought fixing my hiatal hernia would fix my reflux....wrong!

[thesuse2000 698]

Ugh - sorry to hear this! Thanks for sharing with everyone. Wish you luck and success with the next surgery.

[BeagleLover 1,020]

Thanks for letting us know! I'm sure you will help a lot of folks. Hope your new surgery has you feeling a lot better!

Edited July 27, 2014 by BeagleLover

[ChaoticBliss 113]

Oh my goodness. I am so sorry you are having to go through all this. Sending prayers your way.

[swimbikerun 1,045]

I am so very sorry for your complications. I remember TPN. It is not fun at all.

[getnhealthyintx 281]

I am praying for a quick recovery!

[Krystal0528 118]

Durring my egd my doctor informed me of hiatal hernia an said he could repair for me the same time he did my sleeve. I had never had reflux or heart burn issues before but agreed that if there was a problem go ahead an fix. Boy was I wrong...

I was sleeved 5/28 an had the hiatal repair done as well an for some one that has NEVER had any heartburn issues or acid reflux, I am very disappointed that I no have on a daily! My doctor told me to take Pepcid complete... It does wrk to, but no for long. I luv my sleeve an have had no complications so far, but I hate the reflux issues:(

[RJ'S/beginning 5,358]

Is anyone really prepared for any complication....ah no!!!!!!!!!

I hope this is solved soon and you are on your way to victory over your situation and onto a new and better and healthier you!

[tammygRN 35]

Just an update! Since my last update I have been hospitalized 2 more times and had approx 5 more corrective procedures. I had a stent that ran from my lower esophagus to my stomach for 3 weeks until it caused an occlusion and had to be removed a week early, I have also had 2 dilations to open up the sleeve. I am 2 and a half months post op and still off work sitting at home on tube feedings 20 hours per day. The stent shrunk my pouch that had formed and straightened out my stomach, it just caused a lot of inflammation. So I am just now being able to tolerate Clear Liquids in very small amounts. This has been a challenging journey for me and my whole family, but I am hoping and praying that I am finally on the road to recovery.

[thesuse2000 698]

So glad to hear that things are slowly improving!

[bobbyswife 862]

How are you doing now, Tammy?

[Eclectick 129]

Ok, now I am getting scared, I have or had severe acid reflux, since I quit smoking it has subsided a bit..i went from taking 4 OTC Prilosec a day to taking 1 Nexium a day, I can actually go 2 days at the most...however on my 4 day with no Nexium..and I'm hurting (I ran out)

I also have a hiatal hernia that will be removed during sleeve op, but I don't want bypass, the thought of foreign object in my body doesn't sit well with me.. my date is 32 days away...

I am so sorry you went and going through what your going through, and so happy you posted this information here, although everyones body is different, I AM getting really scared.

Edited October 23, 2014 by Eclectick

[tammygRN 35]

Here's my latest update. I am 4 months post op. I just got my feeding tube removed last week. I had it for 3 months. I have a stricture in my sleeve. The doctor has been going in and dilating it every 2 weeks. I have had 3 dilations since the stent was removed. Unfortunately it still isn't opened up enough to eat and drink enough to stay hydrated yet. So I go in to the hospital and get IV hydration twice a week. My last dilation was Tuesday and During that dilation I aspirated and have been in the hospital since then because it caused pneumonia in my upper left lobe of my lung. This has been a long and frustrating journey for me and my family, but on the bright side I have lost 67 lbs in the past 4 months and I am only 23 lbs from my goal weight!

[bobbyswife 862]

I hope that the doctors and surgeon on your team will use your experience to educate themselves and others about possible risks and complications.

You say you had really bad reflux before the sleeve?

[tammygRN 35]

I agree with you bobbyswife and I definitely think my surgeon has learned a lot from all of my complications. And yes I had acid reflux prior to surgery, however when we did the preop EGD we discovered a fairly significant hiatal hernia which the dr associated with my acid reflux and so he felt I was still an ideal candidate for the sleeve. My husband however has acid reflux and was told he is not a candidate for the sleeve because of that. Not that he even still wanted the sleeve after all he has seen me go through. He is having the RNY next month.