What is a gastric lap band slippage, and what causes it?

There are two types of gastric lap band slippage ; anterior and posterior which basically refers to whether the back or front side of the stomach slips. Gastric band lap slippage or prolapse is where the stomach slides up through the Band, making the pouch bigger. If this happens to a patient its because the Band usually becomes too tight, and patients will experience symptoms of reflux (heartburn) as well as nausea and vomiting. This is due to the amount of stomach being “squeezed” by the Gastric Band is increased, thereby obstructing the Band.

Anterior slippage is where the front of the stomach slips up though the band. We try to prevent this by suturing the stomach below the Band to the stomach above the Band, “locking” the Band in place in the right spot. In spite of this, slippage still occurs. It can happen for two reason, one because the surgeon haven’t placed enough stitches, or they haven’t been placed in the right place or secondly slippage can also occur if patients eat too much and vomits frequently.

Posterior slippage was more commonly seen when the Gastric Banding was placed by the “perigastric” technique. With this technique the back side of the stomach was free to slide up through the Band. Now a days surgeons use the “pars flaccida” technique, which was developed to prevent this form of slippage, and has more or less eliminated the incidence of this problem.

Is Gastric Lap Band Slippage Rare or Common?
Unfortunately, at this time there’s not much data on the frequency (or rarity) of gastric lap band slippage in post-surgery patients. As this surgery increases in popularity and longevity, there will certainly be more data available on the frequency of Lap Band slippage in patients,

How is a slipped Band diagnosed?

This is very easy, as diagnosis is made based on the history of the patient. A patient who has been going along fine, with no problems, and then suddenly develops reflux symptoms or symptoms of a too-tight Band will most likely have a slipped Gastric Band. The diagnosis is easily confirmed with an x-ray and barium swallow examination.

How is a slipped Band fixed?

A slipped Band needs to be fixed with another operation. The Gastric Band has to be dissected out, all the sutures removed, and the position of the stomach made right. Some surgeons remove the Band and place it back with a new one and others just straighten things out.

What happens if the Band slips again?

One could certainly try to fix the slip again by again another surgery, but my personal view is that, for whatever reason, the Band is just not working for that particular patient, and ought to be removed.

So you can see gastric lap band slippage can happen and it is solvable.

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Diet after Gastric Banding Surgery

Immediately after your surgery you needs consider your diet after Gastric Banding surgery has been completed, it is important to let it sit and rest so that scar tissue can form around it which is crucial to helping it fix in the correct position. If you were to eat a normal solid diet immediately after the operation your stomach muscles squeeze and churn to break down the food and put stress and pressure on the band and any stitches holding it in position.

The Gastric banding idea is to limit how much food your stomach pouch can contain, so you need to get to grips with your diet after Gastric Banding Surgery if you are going to get the best results. Whilst individual surgery centres do vary in their specific eating plan advice, here is general information and guidance for Gastric banding patients.

Your food will alter as time goes by and can be broken into two different time frames, the first being within the first four weeks and the other being beyond four weeks.

The first four weeks

You will start taking sips of water the day after the gastric band surgery and following day you will probably be able to take free fluids. Once you are taking fluids easily the next step is moving to puree.

The key point to your eating plan for the four weeks after gastric banding is to make sure all your food is pureed and that you eat small quantities (4–5 small meals per day).Here’s the key points to take note when preparing your diet:

• The texture should be something like smooth baby food and this can be achieved by using a food processor or hand–held blender, or push though a sieve to remove any lumps and remember to add a little water to make a smoother consistency.
• The size of your meals should be about 100g, or 5–6 tablespoons is the correct amount. Ensure you eat this slowly and eat in small mouthfuls.
• Stop eating as soon as you start to feel full as your pouch is at the top of your stomach, the feeling of fullness you will get is different from the feeling before and has been explained as a tightness in your chest not your stomach.
• Drink 1.5 litres of water (2 1/2 pints) every day in 100-200ml portions which is too be taken between meals and not with the meal as it could fill you up fast.

Example meals during this stage:

By controlling your diet after Gastric Banding Surgery you will gain the maximum comfort and results, combine this with a exercise after gastric banding surgery routine and your gastric surgery recovery process will be improved.

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