Crosspost....Band to Sleeve revision folks, TALK TO ME!!!! PLEASE!!!!

I went to see my surgeon, and he gave me some "worst case scenario" information. I will share the ABSOLUTE WORST. He said that it is possible that he may not be able to do the sleeve if the band damaged my stomach too much. He also said that I will have a drain (and I know this Dr. normally doesn't use them), and it is possible I will come home on TPN therapy for two weeks (being fed exclusively via IV). He also said that my sleeve may not function properly....getting food down may be hard, vomiting, etc. Has anyone had any problems brought about specifically form the carnage left over from the band?

CJ

I went to see my surgeon, and he gave me some "worst case scenario" information. I will share the ABSOLUTE WORST. He said that it is possible that he may not be able to do the sleeve if the band damaged my stomach too much. He also said that I will have a drain (and I know this Dr. normally doesn't use them), and it is possible I will come home on TPN protocol for two weeks (being fed exclusively via IV). He also said that my sleeve may not function properly....getting food down may be hard, vomiting, etc. Has anyone had any problems brought about specifically form the carnage left over from the band?

CJ

My band has been out since Dec 2012. Hopefully that will help. So, were you able to progress as though you NEVER had a band? Also, how are you doing with the sleeve?

I had a band-to-sleeve revision this year. Before the surgery, my surgeon did a endoscopy to check out what damage (if any) that 10 years of having a useless band might have done. He was specifically looking for erosion of the band into the stomach, which would have made the revision more difficult, but not impossible.

His only caution was that the band might have to be taken out in a separate procedure before doing the sleeve. He said nothing about drains, TPN therapy, or the sleeve not functioning properly. It could be that if there was extensive damage from the band, he would have told me the same things your doctor told you, and then let the decision up to me.

I think your surgeon jumped the gun and scared you needlessly before even checking to see if your band caused any damage at all. There are a lot of people on this site who had the band-to-sleeve revision (sometimes with a gall bladder removal and a hiatal hernia repair thrown in at the same time) and had no problems at all with the sleeve afterward.

Doctors tend to dwell on the worst-case possibilities so as not to raise a patient's hopes that would then have to be squashed. Until he does some sort of test to check out your band, I wouldn't worry too much.

psychoticparrot

I am having an upper GI. I hope it gives all of the info the Dr. needs.

CJ

I was a band to sleeve revision. I had my band removed and my sleeve done in the same procedure. I did have a drain, but it was no big deal. I have never vomited in response to food with my sleeve. Getting food down was always a gamble with my band, but has not been a problem with my sleeve. I've been very happy with my decision to revise and am nearly 5 years out.

Best of luck!

I had my lap-band removed a little more than 2 weeks ago. There was a lot of scar tissue from the lap-band, but no erosion. The surgeon was able to give me my sleeved stomach (and the rest of the DS surgery) at the same time.

One thing I would ask is how experienced is your surgeon with revisions? You may want to call and ask the office for some statistics... and ask what percentage of his lap-band removals result in not doing the revision surgery, require TPN therapy, or have sleeves that don't function... those bullet points he mentioned are setting off some alarms in my head that you might want to find someone else to do the surgery!

He is an incredible surgeon with tons of experience. He is, however, a very straight shooter....too straight perhaps, and I guess he wanted me to know the possibilities. I am just glad this doesn't seem to happen often. Thank You so much for your reply!

CJ

I got my band in 2007 - got it out Feb 2014 - went from 233 to lowest of about 160 with the band. At the end had a hard time with the band - choking on saliva at night etc. and it was empty for a while - regained to 210. With the sleeve I went from 210 to 121 (lowest) from end of April to about Feb. It is nothing short of miraculous. I never get "stuck" - and am full and satisfied with very little food. I have had no trouble with maintenance and could not be happier.

Hi, I had my band in 4 years and removed dec. 2014/ the best thing I ever did was revision to sleeve...my surgeon did it the same time..I had no issues..yes I had a lot of scar tissue but healed up good...I admire my surgeon and i think you should maybe consult someone else. i had the usual after surgery stuff but once home was able to continue with whatever he advised me. you wont regret having it done...I never thought i could go back to smaller sizes again..got my life back...good luck...