2nd Fill No Restriction & Doc trying to dry my wallet...

[unBigun 0]

I was banded 3-18-08 in TJ by Dr. Ramos Kelly. I was forced to wait on this local doctor till May 9 08 to do my first fill. He said he gave me 1cc. I waited another 6 weeks. This is the earliest they would do the second fill. I went in for my second fill & he said he only gave me .6cc I had no restriction at one cc. But he also said that the .6 cc brought me back to 1cc. First of all, how do you loose that much Fluid in that short amount of time. Second, If it wasn't working at 1cc before, why wouldn't he bring me to a higher cc, and third, I called 5 days after my second fill and told them I still had no restriction. They now want me to go get an upper GI because I was banded in TJ. The saline taken/injected was crystal clear, which would lead me to believe everything is intact. Why would I need this. I have no Insurance, and this doc is taking me to the cleaners.

Any advice??????????

PS. I haven't lost any weight since 3 weeks post op loss 18 lbs. & gained back 4-5 lbs.

Edited June 18, 2008 by unBigun
no replies

[mica 0]

Hi there,

I was banded by Dr. Ramos-Kelly as well Jan 25,08 and so far with one 4cc fill (recommended by the clinic) at 6 weeks post-op have lost around 45 lbs! I have the Heliogast band I think 9cc.

Talk to your nurse coordinator from the clinic that did the surgery (mine was Betancourt and she is from Washington state) maybe she can advise you. Good luck! Let me know how it goes.

[unBigun 0]

Thank you. Who did your fill?

[mica 0]

I am Canadian, so had a fill nurse here in Saskatoon do it for $75.00. I was a self-pay (as I'm assuming you are too).

[unBigun 0]

Yes. I am self pay & the one-time fill place I can find that is the least expensive is $300 per fill.

[Alfie 58]

my fill guy said that sometimes they can't really get ALL the Fluid out so that it is a guestimation on how much really "evaporated". I don't understand either why if you had no restriction at 1 cc that he would bring you back to 1 cc. It makes no sense. I'd call him on that one and insist on an increase with no charge since he didn't give you anything different. Why wouldn't he even give you an extra .5??? Weird..Is your band a 4cc band?

Hope it gets straightened out.

Regards,

Alfie

[unBigun 0]

I have a 10cm Inamed band. My friend has the same & she said her doctor said it holds up to 10cc but u could overfill to 12cc.:smile2:

[Jazzywoman 0]

My dr. just started not taking insurance and my fills are 100.00 each. Luckily, he took insurance when I had my surgery!!

See if you can find another fill center. If you can't, then you could always tell the current fill center that you question their medical practices. Then tell them that you will be checking into their record with the Medical board.

That should get them to listen to you.

[bb.gabby 0]

I have a 10cm Inamed band. My friend has the same & she said her doctor said it holds up to 10cc but u could overfill to 12cc.

Hi there, I´m Gabby, Dr. Ramos Kelly´s assistant, I was reading some posts on my doc and just saw yours, can you tell me if you still need some help.

[unBigun 0]

Yes, i am still having fill issues. I went to get another fill and it was good & tight, i thought, but 1/2 an hour later i had to go got .01cc taken out because i started to get sick & i had not even tried to eat anything. It was till tight after she took a little Fluid out, but a couple days later i could eat pretty much anything i wanted again.i have a little restriction now, but it is still not enough. And it has been about a year and a half since my surgery. I have lost 40 pounds and am stuck where i am. I still have 160lbs.to loose.

[unBigun 0]

I also have a son that is 13 and weighs 260lbs. And has asked me about getting a lapband. He has medicaid, and i would like for him to have it. Is this too young, and is there any Dr. That will do it?