All fluid in my lap band is gone

by Karon
(England)

I have had the gastric band for five years. Today I went to the hospital to have a fill done to my band and the doctor (who was also x-raying my band while doing the fill) said that all the fluid inside has gone.

He told me I need to go back to the surgeon who did the operation. He also said that he had not seen this before.

Is there anyone out there who has had this or heard of it happening? If so, what was the outcome?

Many thanks,

Karon

Comments for
All fluid in my lap band is gone

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Go straight back to your surgeon
by: Lonicera The Bandit

It's certainly possible that there's a leak somewhere along the line, particularly if the person doing the fills punctures it in the wrong place by mistake. I know it happens, even in the most professional of outfits, it's just one of those things.

The surgeon will know what to do, so you need to get back there as soon as possible - the sooner they sort you out the better. They can be reluctant to admit it's leaking, but I have a friend to whom it took a year to persuade them to repair it under anesthetic, so the sooner you get going the better. Let us know how you get on?

Lonicera The Bandit, Bristol

Leak Causes and Finding the Leak
by: Lap BAND GROUPIE, The Sweet Spot

Yes, go to your surgeon. Just to add, so you're prepared to ask the right questions... I'm not clear if your surgeon is affiliated with whoever was giving you your fills, or if you have a new Doc now, but as Lonicera said, the most likely cause for this is happened at a fill (usually the needle punctures the tubing or makes a larger hole in the membrane of the port).

So there are those two most likely places: tubing & port, but there are also much less common places that can leak: the connection points (a disconnection), and the LB balloon/manufacturing flaw. Since you're five years out it's not likely that anything happened/was wrong at surgery, unless you've never had good restriction. Since it sounds like you were having the fill under fluoro, they can sometimes see if the port is disconnected from the tubing, but it's not always apparent (and I'm sure they would have told you then).

Here's what I would expect:
- Questions about changes in your restriction, how fast, when, etc.
- Have them recheck that their actually is a leak, take it all out, put a certain amount in and come back in a week to check it (I've heard of errors in diagnosing a leak with fill Tech's).
- A detailed x-ray of the port area to check for disconnections/fractures.
- If that shows nothing, then a fill with contrast solution and under the fluoroscopy they can see exactly where the leak is as they put the contrast in (they're looking for where the contrast starts to spill out of the system). Very rarely the leak is so small they have to do surgery to find it (they can add a dye/think food coloring, then to find it).
- From there they'll replace/fix the part with the flaw, perhaps the whole thing.

Hope all goes well!

fluid gone
by: karon

Hi there,

Thanks for getting back to me. What I forgot to add to my post was that I still have a lot of restriction - that's why I went back as I was fed up with always being sick and not getting food down.

My band has always had a mind of its own - I've never being able to eat the same food - on one day mash potatoes goes down not a lot but enough for me to fill full, yet the next day or two days later its not possible, and that goes for most foods. So I've never quite known what I can eat from day to day, but I was ready to except that.

Now 5 years down the line I've had enough. I was really shocked when they said all the fluid was gone, and I'm still waiting for the doctors to get back to me. They are so slow I feel like they have done the op now and that's it, they were never any good in the first place when they were getting my fills right, but that's another story.

But a big thanks to the two of you who got back to me. I will give an update later and also try and help those people with my experience.

fluid gone now found
by: karon

Well, you'll never believe it, but they found fluid in my band. I had 6.5 ml. Now I've got 5 ml. Now that I've got 5 ml, oh boy can I eat... I think TOO much, but the nurse gave me a card to carry around with me like a doner card.

After 5 years, I'm just enjoying the freedom of being able to eat somewhat normally again.

I saw a lovely nurse the other day who explained that it was not acceptable to be sick even three times a week. I'm feeling great, and I can't believe that I put up with this for so long.

I can see myself needing another fill, but it's good to know that I'm back on track. All the best to you!

Update
by: Lap BAND GROUPIE

Karon,
SO glad to hear there wasn't a leak (as I mentioned, this misdiagnosis has happened to others)!

Thanks for posting the update, and I know you'll enjoy the holidays! When you're ready for another fill, I'd suggest that you work with your doc to do so slowly... approach the sweet spot with small tweaks (I know Banders who have felt a difference with as little as .1cc).

It sounds to me that you were over-filled for a long time and not only is that no fun, but it can lead to weight gain if you're not able to eat solid proteins (Soft Food Syndrome). Bands are fickle and restriction can vary from day to day/time of day, but having any PB's (vomiting) will really effect restriction afterwards due to swelling from the trauma.

I'm tighter in the mornings but can still eat my very thick oatmeal (w/protein powder) and the rest of the day I can eat ANYTHING. If you're unable to eat solid proteins, you're too tight.

Have a great holiday!

Related Pages:
- Lap Band Problems & Lap Band Complications
- Lap Band Surgery Failure - 2 Types & How to Avoid Them

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