Infected Band?

[Girlmoose 0]

CONGRATS Bill!!! 1.5 weeks with no antibiotics & no infection!!! That's really encouraging news! :eek: I'm sending positive thoughts your way for the next few weeks that you'll beat this infection from ever coming back! GOOD LUCK! :woot:

You do have me curious though and maybe I don't really want to know... :thumbup: What ugly things can a staph a. infection do inside??? It was EXTREMELY painful for a couple of days before we figured it out and drained it... I'm hoping that since we got it out within 5 of the pain starting that hopefully it was limited in its destructive ways.

Over night a light scab has come over the seeping area. (About a 1/4 to 1/2" long). It's worrisome because that means it has no where to drain and get out of my body as long as it is still brewing... :woot: On the other hand, it has to stop seeping some time, if it is ever going to heal on it's own also... :smile2: Just not sure I'm going to be as lucky as you...

Your weight loss is GREAT Bill!!! :woot: I wish I had 60 pounds off! My weight loss is either really slow or all at once after surgeries or fills. They did tell me, when your body is fighting hard on these infections or illnesses, it goes into that fight or flight mode and the weight loss slows way down or STOPS! :woot: I was eating so little at times and NO weight loss at all! UGH! No rewards there for being sick... :woot: One thing that might help fighting the infection, if your up to it, is just plain walking! It increases oxygen into your cells, which will help you fight off infections and illnesses. :woot: Besides, being great for our muscles and toning, without over doing it.

FYI for all. I did talk to the Allergen company (manufacturer) twice since I've had all these problems. They were very nice and helpful. They followed up and called me back to see how I was. You talk to an RN, who does document your case. They have talked to my DR. also. They try and come up with ideas and other cases they are following to help you get through these times. Probably tries to protect themselves too from problems...

GOOD LUCK TO ALL!

[Leticia 0]

Hi Guys...

Thank you so much for your concern. You you know what? actually I'm not disappointed at all. I had my band for two years without any complications other them a little swollen, food stuck, little things like that. But now, I knew something was going on inside, because this kept draining and draining over and over, very little though, but it came from deep inside. I had no pain, no fever and no other symptoms, so when I got to the hospital in Mexico to see my Dr, He said that He had to open so he could bring the camera in and see what's was going on and then decide if it was necessary to remove the band or not, and I agreed with that. Now I'm glad I did, because what He found inside was a huge infection that had spread all over, even though I had been taking strong antibiotics for a month, an eroded band, and therefore a whole in my stomach that was cause by the bacteria in order to get out. He removed the band very carefully He said, fix the stomach whole with stitches, clean the infected area and leave drainers in two sides, It was like 4 hours surgery, and they had just brought me back to my room when the Dr came to see me, He notice that I was very pale and my pulse was going down, so He rushed me back to the operation room, (more anesthesia) open again to take a look with the camera and make sure there was not an internal bleeding. Thanks God, there was not, it was just that I had lost a lot of blood, so I need it two transfusions. I had to stay in the hospital for 5 days and three more days at the hotel so He could keep an eye on me then I came home, and been recovering kind of slow but it is healing well. I also went to a different Dr here who is an specialist in infections and did some blood work on me. It came up negative, no sings of infections, so I feel relief.

I'm actually not disappointed on this like I said. I'm grateful that I had the opportunity to have a band for a long time, I lost about 100 pounds already, I'm still about 25 pounds to my goal, which I'm going to loose, I know is going to be harder without the band but I'm going to do it. I think the band did its purpose on me, which is teach you how to eat slow, chew very well, and then exercise and make healthy choices on what we put in our mouth that is up to us.

I take my hat off on you guys for fighting this so well, I wish nothing but the best, and thank you so much for sharing your journeys here, it sure makes me feel that I'm not alone.

God Bless you

Leticia

[ManhBill 0]

Staph infections can cause a number of different problems. Toxic shock, cellulitis, impetigo, among others. One of the more serious possibilities is that it can infect your heart valves and actually require valve replacement. It's not an infection to take lightly.

Scabbing over of your incision may be a very good thing. When I was hositalized, Dr. Ren was waiting for my incision to stop leaking serous Fluid (clear, looks like water). After the incision healed over, I still had some Fluid collecting behind the scar. The amount has diminished with time. Your body will eventually absorb the extra liquid. However, if you're producing pus or a colored fluid, your doctor may want to keep the incision draining. You should definitely stay in very close contact with the doctor to be certain it's getting better.

I know how difficult it can be to stay positive when you're having complications. There were times I was ready to have the whole thing taken out. But, if you can hang in and allow everything to heal, the benefits to your health will make it worth all the frustration.

Keep us posted on how you're doing.

[Girlmoose 0]

I looked up the staph infections on the net... I don't think I really wanted to know before now... UGH! :thumbup: I'm hoping, I'm not being dumb considering leaving my band in with such a serious type of infection. :thumbup:

When the Radiology Dr. removed the infection, using the ultra sound to see where the infection is and exactly where to put the needle and when the infection was drained. The infection shows up as a dark area on the ultra sound and he kept showing it to me as he was doing the procedure... The port also shows up as a dark area on the ultra sound so it was a little hard for me to know, what is the port and is there any more liquid left but the Dr. felt pretty confident that he had gotten most of it.

The reason I'm explaining this is the Radiology Dr. gave me a good visual of the importance of this procedure and draining it.... He told me that before draining the infection it is like a big round ball of infection. When you drain the infection, it is like deflating the ball. You are now left with something much smaller and flat (like his hands together). It helps the antibiotics work better because they now don't have to penetrate and work on so much infection. It's a much smaller area it has to attack and kill... I know how much draining I had, especially the first 24 hours! :thumbup: I can only imagine how much drainage others have had that didn't get some of the infection removed first... I'm wondering if this is some of the difference between Bill and I. I guess I'm hoping this will help me from having some of the damage from a staph infection and help me heal faster from it and why I wasn't put in the hospital for IV's... :sad:

I wish I had my port as long as Leticia and had lost most of my weight and been maintaining. I'm not as comfortable with the thought of having it removed... I'm afraid to go back without the band... I don't want to fight my weight my entire life. :laugh:

I'm thinking I'm going to tell the Dr. that if he goes in and the infection inside is big or has spread or a risk of damaging my health, that he needs to remove the band and port entirely... I can't keep going through these surgeries. I wish insurance was better for these procedures. It gets expensive for flipping the port surgery and I already know this one is going to be more expensive then that surgery. If the Dr. thinks things really look good and I have a good chance of putting the port on the left side and staying infection free, then he should go ahead and do that. I'm thinking that this is really my only option at this point... :thumbup:

Leticia, you sound really good for just having surgery on Tues. I'm sure you have a peace of mind now and know that you can heal fully and put this behind you. I wish you all the best and I know you have learned a lot and you are going to do GREAT at keeping your weight off and getting the next 25 off... I talked with someone on this site that had lost over 100 pounds and was having trouble getting the lasts 25 off with the band. She was really considering weight watchers to teach her how to eat healthier and smarter to give her that little boost at the end... You may not need something like that. You may already have a good eating plan and DETERMINATION can go a long way! :smile2:

Good luck and get plenty of rest this next week and keep that incision area CLEAN!!! (I'm turning into a germ phobiaist!) One thing I have learned from all this is, no matter what... Surgery is surgery and even if it is a little procedure, it still takes 6 weeks to fully heal! I'm sure you'll feel GREAT way before that though!!! :crying:

[Leticia 0]

Girl,

I had my surgery not this past Tuesday but the one before. A week ago about this time, I was in so much pain, I have no energy to be sitting down on the computer believe me, this really was a bigger surgery than I thought. But time does amazing things and today I even did some light cleaning around my house.

I don't really know if I have a specific plan or not, but if for the past two years I have been eating a little of everything I like, small amounts and more than 3 meals a day, I don't see why I can't continue doing that I just hope that works. Besides I was told that my liver is still big and the best treatment for that is to loose the weight (it was huge when I had the original surgery) My Dr said He can put the band back in about six months but I don't think so. He also mention the gastric sleeve, but who knows, it would be as a last source, well the band for me was kind of that, and I always knew that it was going to be temporary because my body soon or later would rejected. (mind is powerful) and right now I'm putting my mind on not seeing my self gaining any weight back. I think what is helping me is that for the past year I had an empty band, actually I only had two fills in two years because I was always so restricted.

Ok, I will keep coming to see how you guys are doing and of course I'll looking forward for good news.

God Bless

Bill thanks for all the information you have given!

Leticia

[Girlmoose 0]

Leticia, I hope you are still recovering well and feeling better. I was wondering if you had pain in the stomach area where the band was and where they removed it... Just curious. I think you will do really well since you haven't needed that many fills. It is motivating also to know that your liver was really enlarged and you DON'T want to go back to that! Your mind seems to be in the right place and just stay there. It seems like a few extra bites each day led us to being overweight. Just listen to your body and when your satisfied. I think if I had not drank with meals 15 minutes before and an hour after a meal, I wouldn't have eaten as much and gotten overweight. I realize now how even without the band, how much more food a person can eat when we wash it down. Also, by chewing and chewing and chewing before you swallow, you can tell which foods is going to leave you hungry. The foods that can just dissolve in your mouth from chewing, isn't going to fill you up like meat, fruit and veggies. GOOD LUCK with your journey to being healthier!!!

I hope Bill is still infection free. He has given me hope that I can do this too! :success1: The Dr. took me off of my strong antibiotics Monday to see what happens before we just do expensive surgery to replace the port. I've been 3 1/2 days without pain or infection around the port area. The small area that was barely seeping is trying to keep a scab. The showers kind of make it soft again though. The Dr. says the 5th day is when this type of infection blooms... :biggrin: He will be really encouraged if I can make it 7 days without signs and after 2 weeks I should be out of the woods! YIPEE!!! I'm still holding my breath though because I know how fast and intense the infection can come back if the port is still infected... :hurray:

I'm going to keep positive thoughts for everyone and their healing process! Hang in there!!! :thumbup:

Edited June 19, 2008 by Girlmoose

[sheemac32 0]

Hey leticia

I was gonna let you know I'm on my third set of abt's hopefully this one will work, it looks better and is not as hot, go back to the doctor on monday. I hope all is going well with you since your surgery. Let me know how you are doing. bye for now.

Sheena

[Girlmoose 0]

Hi everyone! It's been pretty quiet around here. I hope everyone is doing okay and keeping the infections at bay... :thumbs_up: I have been off of the strong antibiotics 2 weeks tomorrow and doing fine until this afternoon. I've started having pain in my right side. :eek: The incision has been closed for over a week and not seeping infection. It doesn't look bad at all. The pain is on the innder side (away from my skin) and spread wide. That is where the infection built up before that they drained during an ultra sound. I'm hoping that this pain is just a sore muscle or something from working on the computer and sitting too long last night... Wishful thinking, I know....

I hope everyone can update with some positive results on the infection front! Good luck to all! :biggrin:

[melody_mary_42f 0]

I am wondering if anyone has had the lap band after having the staple proceure that was popular back in the 80's?

[Firebolt 3]

Hi Girlmoose,

I have a very specific question about the problems you've been experiencing. I was banded in 11/07, and have had no problems so far *Knock on Wood*.

But, my Mom had the surgery in February of this year. She just found out today that she has an infected port and it will be removed tomorrow at 6am.

Your story seems to fit almost exactly with what she has experienced.

She started having pain in her left rib cage area. Doctors thought perhaps she cracked a rib. Pain then moved around, and the doctors thought perhaps she pulled a muscle. She has been in very bad pain for almost 1 month.

She went to her Bariatric Surgeon last week, and he poked around and didn't find anything. He thought perhaps she was dealing with diverticulitis (infection in the bowels). They put her on antibiotics, but she couldn't tolerate them (almost an allergic reaction). She has been working w/her family doc and her bariatric doc. They did a CT scan to make sure everything was placed ok & no visable cancers. Today the Bariatric doc felt around the port area and said that it feels like there is an infection, therefore they will remove the port tomorrow.

So, after that long story, here's my question: You mentioned that your pain started in your left rib cage area & then moved towards your port. Was your original port on the left side or right?

Ours are on the right side (which is why pain in her left side didn't immediately correlate to the port on her right side).

I pray that you are doing better & that the infections & surgeries are over with. Please drop me a line when you get a chance.

Thanks!

[Girlmoose 0]

Hi Firebolt and Mom!

My port has always been on my right side. The pain that I had in my upper rib cage area (that felt like a broken rib bone, because it hurt to breath deeply too) was from scar tissue from when they put the lap band in on Dec. 17th. I thought maybe there was a twist in the cord that started up by the band and then worked itself down eventually to flip the port. (Just my own rationing at the time, trying to explain pain in the left upper rib cage, when NOTHING is there...) However, after my second surgery May 5th to flip the port, he actually took those camera pics and printed them for me while they were doing the surgery. He said he had only one other case that had more scar tissue then mine. When they first go in they can usually see the cord right away. On me, all they could see was scar tissue! :smile2: They cleaned it all out and flipped my port, washed the port area out good with antibiotics and then started me immediately on antibiotics after surgery. When they tested the tissue they removed after surgery it did show an infection growing there.

Looking back, I think I would have had better luck if they would have replaced the port when they flipped the port. I have a feeling your chances of a port infection is greatly increased when they go messing around with it... I felt great after that May 8th surgery though... Until 5 days after antibiotics and the infection blossoms again...

I'm scheduled to have my THIRD surgery tomorrow morning. He said they have really good luck when they replace a port and put it on the opposite side (now my left side) where there are no signs of infection. They are going to clean up the port area again on the right side and remove the old port and look for scar tissue and organs to make sure everything is healthy and not causing these infections. If he gets inside and thinks its too risky to put the port in right now, I told him to just take everything out. I can't keep affording all these surgeries, xrays, and tests because of problems. :thumbup:

I love my band and the results I have gotten with it. I've been through so much and expense, i hate to remove it all and now have nothing for it... Everyone says, you will just gain on the weight back too, unless you make some major changes in your lifestyle and eating... :wink2: Text book port infections, does say to remove the port, let the patient heal for a few weeks and then go back in and place the new port. Your Mom should be fine doing it that way...

I just don't really want a 4th surgery. I also looked at the latest procedure (which my Doctor hasn't done on any of his patients but he is trained for it and the way he thinks things in this field will go strongly towards) is the Gastric sleeve... It's interesting because you don't have any fills or Doctor visits, not flipped ports, infections and etc. but it does cut out 2/3 of your stomach that you can't ever get back though...

I've lost half of my weight already, but if there was a way they could do this procedure and maybe leave me with more of my stomach intact, I would really consider this procedure... I just don't have that much time right now to delay having surgery a couple of weeks to go to a Doctor that does this procedure around me. It's hard to find a lot of people who have done this either because you don't have a forum like this to talk to people who have had the sleeve done. The complication rates are very low, no mal-absorbation issues and the upkeep is so low that people aren't talking as much as they are about their bands...

I'm a really healthy person and I'm always the one who has the flu just a couple of days while everyone else has it for a week... Same with colds or I just don't get them... This has really shocked me because I never thought I would have infection problems and this long drawn out lap band saga...

My Dr. who is has been an internist for over 20 years and his wife is an infectious disease Doctor, which I'm sure he has been sharing my case with but saving me a visit to her. He also thought that my appendix might be the culprit of the infections. He said an appendix can infect the port, but a port cannot infect an appendix. I had a CT scan ran last week and said all my organs were fine, but it couldn't really read my appendix too well, the colon is in front of it. He is going to look and make sure while he is in there that it is healthy.

If I take my electronic thermometer over my head, I have had a 99 - 100 degree temp for over a week now. I had this temp, after my first surgery (and he didn't put me on antibiotics after that surgery) and it eventually went away. I'm thinking the infection was just brewing in the scar tissue that your body does trying to protect the organs from infection and something foreign when it is in fighting mode...

Here's an science experiment for you guys... I just started testing my left side area with this thermometer and it reads 98.6, very normal. When I put it around the incision area (which is redish now and obviously infected just from looking at it) it reads 101 - 102. It started this temp. before it turned red when the Dr. could see it was infected and red.

The Dr. thinks my infection this time is close to the skin surface because the CT scan picked up no Fluid or infection around the port. Which is a good sign that my inside cavity, isn't a pool of infection like before when they drained over 30 c.c. of infection in the Radiology dept. (The Doctors couldn't see or feel the liquid or infection either. They were surprised there was infection in there when they ran the ultra sound) You can't always "see" that infection is there... This is another reason I think he can clean up that area, keep me on strong antibiotics and still put in a new clean port on the left side....

I Hope this helps. I know I've given a lot of info but there can be so much to this and you just want to make the best choices for a speedy recover with as little procedures as possible. I really need to get my life back on track. It's hard to put your life on hold this long when these things just drag out...

I wish you and your Mom the best. :wink: I'll let you know what they find tomorrow in surgery, as soon as I'm up to it. Let me know how your Mom comes through this and what they find inside... This really is the only way they really know what's going on inside there.... I hope the infection hasn't gotten to painful for her... It's AMAZING how fast these infections blossoms and grows! :seeya: GOOD LUCK! :tongue2:

[Girlmoose 0]

It's been really quiet around here. I hope everyone is doing okay. I thought I would update in case my story helps someone else. I got a second opinion in a Doctor's office that has two Doctors together doing this. They were very thorough and really insisted that I have a scope, where you are in la-la land and they have you swallow a camera and take pictures inside your stomach. They went down and then angled the camera back up toward the band and sure enough I have lots of band erosion! I'm so glad I got a second opinion because I could have chosen to have a new port installed on my left side. I've had such good results with weight loss that I was almost ready to do this. In fact, I had surgery scheduled to do this but we ended up deciding for second opinion before we spent the money for a 3rd expensive surgery...

My new Doctors are going to do surgery Monday afternoon to remove everything and repair the damage. They told me right off that with staph infections it is very common to have erosion of the band and it is very common to have lots of scar tissue as an issue also, which I have had. They think it is likely to that my liver has attached itself to my scar tissue around the stomach as well... :drool: They are going to repair and clean everything up. It sounds like I should expect lots of pain from this surgery... I'll probably be in the hospital anywhere from 1 - 3 nights, depending on how I do...

I sure never thought this would be my story... I never thought it would be this bad... It sounded like the lap band is so easy and such low percentages of things going wrong... The new Doctors also said they have had a lot of cases they have fixed from people that have gone to Mexico and they end up somehow with these type of infections too... Not good news... Sorry... I really hope everyone else is doing better than me and recovering well... Good luck to all! :thumbup:

[Firebolt 3]

Hi Girl...As I write this, you are probably in surgery. I'm sorry you've been through he** with this.

I wanted to give an update on my Mom - she ended up needing to have the entire band/port removed. The infection had spread, and just to be certain, they removed it all. She stayed in the hospital for 4 days afterwards on IV antibiotics.

She's been home for about 1 wk now, but woke up this morning with a lot of drainage. She's going back to her surgeon tomorrow...will keep you posted.

In the mean time, my prayers are with you & anyone suffering from this same problem. My band has had no problems...knock on wood! But we all must remain aware & vigilant for any problems that may creep up!

[Girlmoose 0]

I'm sorry to hear about your Mom's infection being so bad. They did the right thing by removing it all, even if it isn't what we really want to happen.

I just got home today from the hospital today. My new Doctor ended up putting a drain on my left side and just took it out before I came home. The right port area they left a big hole! YUCK! :frown: I HATE that the most because morning and night we have to change it. My husband has to pull out the wet/dry gauze packing in this area, and then redo it all over again. They liked how well it is healing, but I have to do this one to two weeks until there is no more space to stick the gauze in.

The Dr. did this so that it would heal from the inside out. I would have preferred stitches myself! I totally dread when it starts getting time to change it.

I hope your Mom's recovery is fast and she heals well. With my other infections I had, my old Doctor said that drainage was good because the infection had build up has somewhere to go. This procedure wasn't near what I thought it would be. I just didn't imagine drains and this hole to deal with.... I hope this makes sense because I'm still on pain killers! Good luck to all!!!

[Firebolt 3]

Hi GirlMoose,

I'm glad you're home. You know, the type of hole you mention is exactly what my mom has right now. Again, has to be stuffed w/clean gauze twice a day. Her Doc also said that it is best if it heals from the inside out. Less likely to become infected.

I just wonder - will it leave a huge scar? I guess that really doesn't matter in the big picture. All that matters is that you're health & healing! Hang in there!

Judy