Well respected OB/GYN dies from banding complications...

[mini_me 3]

Does anyone know who her doctor was? ((not making any assumptions, i am already banded. just curious))

This was a very popular doctor in our area.

Report: Doctor died from infection > Houston Community Newspapers Online - News Around Town > Conroe Courier > News

[Melisa1 0]

omg!!! how can we prevent something like this from happening? I woner what the symptoms are and how we can help keep from getting an infection like this?? Im going to take the article to my primary dr and ask what i can watch for. Thank you for sharing...we should all be informed and aware of stuff like this. SCARY!!!

[OH Juli 15]

My heart hurts for her family.

[Brandy~ 2]

My thoughts go out to her family.

As with all surgeries there are risks. Because of the article there isn't a reason for anyone to panic. We are given the risks before the procedure and it's very sad that sometimes things do go wrong.

All it took was one tiny spore of bacteria to be present when she was stitched up after surgery. I assume that you would detect this infection through pain and soreness... most of the times the infection causes the skin on the outside to become red and hot to the touch.

This isn't true for all situation but I can see since she was only 3 weeks out how this could of been missed. She may have assumed it was just post op healing pain.

I wish the best for all her family this holiday season.

[TQUAD64 9]

This story is shocking and sad. I feel terrible for the family and now the holidays are here. I have no idea who the doctor is.

[mini_me 3]

The whole community is reeling over this death. It is a true tragedy.

I am not sure how this could have been missed, especially since she was a physician herself. There is surely a lesson to be learned here.

I am very sympathetic to her family and friends.

If anyone learns who the doctor was, please IM me.

[lilmam00 0]

I read the paper today and my heart just sunk. I am doing the insurance requirments to be banded and this made me think twice. I use Dr Collier and phoned him b/c I had so many questions about this. The paper said the doctor she used was a local doctor so I was worried. My doctor assured me he was not involved nor was the facility he works out of. There are few physicians in the Woodlands area. I am sure it won't be long before they release the name of the doctor she used. My heart and prayers go out to the family!

[Daisalana 33]

That is horrible, her poor family..

Reitterates that when in doubt, see a doctor.

[HeatherO 7]

I am sad to hear this happened as well and I feel terrible for her and her family.

There are risks with any surgery, even if it is small. Even if there is less than a 1% chance of it happening, it means everything to the person who happens to fall on the wrong side of the statistic.

I am especially surprised that the infection was missed since she was a doctor. It is just a reminder that it is very important to stay in contact with your doctors. Although forums are helpful for advice, everyones experience can be entirely different even if it sounds the same.

[*slim* 2]

I am saddened about her death. I think her being a doctor actually might explain things. First, doctors are not known for being good patients because they tend to try to treat themselves. Also, as a doctor, she would have been around both patients that could have been carriers for the bacteria. There are always risks with surgery of any kind. But it should not scare people so bad that they decide against surgery simply because of 1 tragic death.

[lindaloulynn 0]

slim-n-tn I agree with the fact that healthcare workers are exposed to many more infections than anyone else and are often carriers without knowing. I am exposed daily to all kinds of "bugs" and my surgeon gave me extra antibotics just in case. It is really scary to hear about this though. My thoughts and prayers to the family.

[abby1 0]

While my heart goes out to her and her family, I am going to play devil's advocate for a moment. This will be the same type of questions a lawyer or insurance company will ask with regards to any potential lawsuit. Why two weeks after surgery did she travel on vacation? Why did her doctor allow it or did he even know? Could the flight or altitude make the infection worse? Could she have gotten exposed on the flight? When I had my surgery, I made sure I would be home for the first six weeks in case there was a complication no matter what stage of recovery I was in. At two to three weeks, I was still on clear to full liquids. I would not have wanted to be away from home.

[Tropicana 0]

While my heart goes out to her and her family, I am going to play devil's advocate for a moment. This will be the same type of questions a lawyer or insurance company will ask with regards to any potential lawsuit. Why two weeks after surgery did she travel on vacation? Why did her doctor allow it or did he even know? Could the flight or altitude make the infection worse? Could she have gotten exposed on the flight? When I had my surgery, I made sure I would be home for the first six weeks in case there was a complication no matter what stage of recovery I was in. At two to three weeks, I was still on clear to full liquids. I would not have wanted to be away from home.

Already blaming the victim....

[abby1 0]

I am not blaming her. We and the public only have a partial story. In the article her husband states: "...when she appeared to have altitude sickness along with the rest of the family.

“But she seemed to be suffering more than the rest of us,” her husband Scott Finley said Monday. “She’s a doctor, so the whole time she was trying to diagnose herself, you know, ruling things out.”

There are serious questions that have to be answered before blaming this totally on the lapband surgery. Did she somehow become exposed to the infection from a patient? I became extremely ill from something I caught on an airplane flight. Was she exposed to something on the flight? Assuming she was on a clear liquid diet, did the lack of food weaken her in some way making it more difficult to fight the infection? Did anyone else having surgery that day in the center get ill? If so, maybe the operating room was not as sterile as it should have been. During the autopsy did they find something amiss? Was there band erosion or other problem directly from they surgery?

I hope the medical professionals will continue to examine her death and make thier findings public so that those of us with or considering the band can make intelligent decisions.

[Brockbabe82 0]

This is awful... my heart is with her family.