CAUTION!!! is your fill doc really qualified??

[Hana 0]

Hi, i wanted to share my fill experience with you.

i got banded in mexico on 8-6, and went in for my first fill on 9-17 at fill centers usa.for anyone who dosent know, that is a chain of nationwine providers who offer fills to people who get the band in other countries, or have moved, their doc moved, etc.they are not band specialists. they are providers who took a "how to do fills" class.

so i go,and i show him my info card that says my band size is 10 cm and i asked, how much cc dose that hold. he says 10 cm holds 10 cc. hmmm. at the time, i trusted that to be true. i mean, after all- he did take a class...

he said since this was my first fill, we will start small, not to aggressively, so he will put in only 2 cc. i said ok, he stuck in the needle, and put in 2 cc. or so i thought...(for the record, this was done with fluroscopy. some fillcenters locations offer that at additional cost)

in the meantime, before this, i was having alot of pain. i asked him about it, he didnt know what to tell me, and said to go see a specialist.

i just found out also that fill centers has the option to consult with the surgeons that co-founded this service, about any issues. that was never offered to me then.

so the first doc i went to see was a surgeon who dose different operations, some bands, not a band specialist. the only reason i bring him up here, is because he also said i had a 10cc band, based on the 10 cm...

we discussed the pain, and i did not get a fill that day.

this friday, i went to see a band surgeon specialist.we discissed the pain, wich is alot better, by the way, and i said, can i have a fill- since i was here. it was a long drive, and other than the restriction from the band just beeing there, i don't feel restriction from the 2 cc first fill. i can eat way to much, and i really feel i need it. he said- ok, but you dont feel anything at all from that fill? your band is half full, i said no, its not. i only have 2 out of 10 in there... he said no, your band is a 4 cc band. a 10 cm band holds 4 cc. i said what? but i was told... he said he would see with the fluroscopy... but he was already sure. so i paid for the fluro, he dosent do fills without, and sure enough, it was a 4 cc band.

and also-get this, he said, there was nothing in there yet. it was EMPTY!!ZERO!! he said the fill centers must have put it in wrong.

so he put in 2.4 cc for me , and i went home. i double checked and researched online, and yes, the inamed 10cm band holds 4 cc. not 10.

so i called fill centers today, monday, and said-first of all, i never really got a fill there! whats up with that? and second, the size issue. that is acually potentially dangerous! i mean, for example, if i didnt have the pain and would not have gone to the band specialist, i would have probably gone back again and again to fill centers. what if some of the fills WOULD have gone in?? he thinks i have a 10 cc band, how much would he have stuffed in there? and what happens? i mean some 10 cc bandsters have as much as 7 point some cc in their band!!i dont know, would it pop? it cant be good, thats for sure. and its not like there are soooo many different sizes! inamed has 3-4 kinds, and i would think they would teach that in a basic "band filling" class.

so the doc didnt know what he is doing!! i got wrong info, an empty fill, plus he could have punctured the tubing- the needle was in there.but the liqued went somewhere else. he is not qulified and that is hazardous. he could have really done some damage.

so fill centers response was- about the size issue-maybe the doc was thinking 4 cc but telling me 10. hu????

first of all, thats not true. he said 10 wich is why he is starting with a small 2 cc fill, since this was my first. and second of all, if that weird theory was true, also saying wrong info is a bad and dangerous medical practice. i need to know the right info, and I NEED HIM TO TELL ME IT WITH HIS MOUTH, SINCE I DONT READ DOCTOR'S MINDS!!

about the empty fill, she said- well, what do you want? a free fill next time you come here?

thats like getting a gift certificate to stay at a hotel that has bugs, as compinsation for all the bug bites you got at your last stay there.

so i said no, i want a refund. i dont feel safe going back there, i dont feel he is qualified to do fills!

and this was under fluro! i'm scared to think what if it was done without, what else could have happened...

so she said, get a letter from the specialist to prove the band had nothing in it, and fax it over. they will process it, and MAYBE i will get a refund. but they dont usualy aprove that.

well, thats my fill horror story. thanks for reading. i felt i needed to share this, if anything, just to say, make sure you get fills from a specialist band surgeon, or at least a doc who you know REALLY knows what he/she is doing. not just any provider who took a "how to fill" class. even if they are certified. the fill centers provider took the class and got the certificate, and even with that paper-look what happened...

so be aware, otherwise, it could be dangerous for your safety, your health, and the band.

[tonya66 13]

Wow - what a horrible experience you had!!!!

[Terri-ific 0]

Hana: That's awful! I'm so glad you were not injured. Just goes to show that you really need to know who you are dealing with! Take care!

[VegasGrace 1]

Wow, thanks for sharing the story. We leave to much up to the docs. I was also banded in Mexico, use fillcentersusa. I read my instruction manual front to back several times. I knew going in that I was going to receive a 2cc fill. And I knew going back that I'd get around .2-.5...I got .2.

The book explains it all.

But that's true, the fillcentersusa doc only does my fills...nothing else. If I need something done with the band I'd go to my surgeon or go to the fillcenter doc as a patient...not thru fillcentersusa.

I'm 30 pounds away from my goal and this was the best $8000 I ever spent! {airfare, surgery, surgicenter, fills, everything}