Lap Band Erosion Symptoms
The perfect body may be unattainable for most. However, modern technology and surgical procedures have helped many achieve outcomes close to their goals. Lap band surgery is a popular but complicated and serious procedure. It is major surgery, and it also has some severe complication possibilities, one of which is erosion. Lap band erosion has several implications; one, of course, is the failure of the band to do what it is meant to do.
Definition
Erosion occurs when the band penetrates the stomach wall and enters the stomach. Normally placed lap bands surround the outer stomach and constrict it.
Occurrence
Erosion is not typical in modern surgical procedures and happens only in about 2 percent of all lap band patients. In the past, it was much more common, because the band was permanently placed tighter around the stomach.
Symptoms
Many people who experience lap band erosion have no pain or symptoms. The only signal that there is any problem is that weight loss stops. However, some people experience symptoms that vary from moderate to severe, such as stomach pain, swelling and reddened skin around the port due to the bacteria entering the system. There is a general loss of restriction normally created by a working lap band.
Diagnosis
An upper gastrointestinal (GI) exam is used to diagnose lap band erosion. Lap band erosion can also be caught during computed tomography (CT) scans.
Causes
Erosion is usually caused by the band being placed too tightly around the stomach wall or sutures that are too tight. Past application methods were more likely to cause this complication than current methods.
Treatment
The first order of treatment of lap band erosion is to take antibiotics for the bacterial infection and prompt removal of the port. Removal of the band from the stomach is not considered an emergency and can be done at leisure. It is considered semielective surgery. Unlike with installation, an eroded lap band may require open abdominal surgery instead of laparoscopic surgery, and recovery times are much longer. In many cases, the surgeon can install a new lap band during the same surgery that he is removing the eroded band.
