doctor said my port is too deep to reach to have a fill

mommalois59 · 12-06-2007, 12:48 AM

has anyone ever had trouble getting a fill, i had my surgery on sept 26, 07 and still havent been able to get my first fill, doctor sent me to the radiologist to get my fill because , he said it was to deep for him to reach it in office, went to the radiologist to have it fill, and they were also unable to reach it,,,,,, very disappointed, has this ever happen to anyone else??????

DonHoll1 · 12-06-2007, 01:13 AM

This is the first time i have heard of it, but i am pretty new.I do know the more weight you lose, the easier it is to find. Best of luck, Donna

Leena · 12-06-2007, 08:18 AM

When the port is deeper in the layers of fat it's not as easy to reach with the needle (it is a long needle but sometimes just not long enough). Eventually you should be able to feel the port through your skin, and then you'll be able to have an easy fiill.

With my first fill there was a problem finding the center of the port. Then the dr commented that I had lost just enough weight for him to get in there, otherwise I would have had to come back when I'd lost more. My second fill was a breeze as I could feel the port myself. My 3rd fill is today and I know it's going to be just as easy.

Hang in there and give it some time.

-Leena

juliegeraci · 12-06-2007, 06:44 PM

Any chance you can have it moved?

mss · 12-08-2007, 08:45 AM

My doctor had a bit of trouble finding my port for my first fill. He eventually put a pillow in the middle of my back and had me lay back down and was able to do it. He has asked me to practise abdominal exercises to strengthen my tummy muscles and that this may help when I get my next fill.

wendy1263 · 12-12-2007, 09:21 PM

What is the deal with doctors who put these ports in places even THEY can't reach??? My doctor put my port at the very top of my abdomen right under the breast in the middle. It sticks out like a button. If they had put mine in the middle somewhere, I KNOW they wouldn't have found it. :) I told him it was a good plan to put it there when I had my first fill and he said he didn't have a lot of time to try to find it when he had a lot of fills to do each day. If I was to have surgery and you have a lot of stomach fat like me...I would have them put it at the top too. Just my opinion. :help:

Puddin499 · 04-08-2008, 01:02 PM

I know this thread is old, but I found it while trying to see if anyone else out here had this same problem.

My doctor also has a very difficult time reaching my port. He tried several times in his office, then next at the hospital under fluoroscopy. It was unsuccessful. He told me that I will have to have another surgery (although minor and outpatient) to move the port to a different location at the breastbone area.

Well, when I got home after discussing it with him at his office, I had decided that I really don't want to have another surgery. Instead, I want to try to take off some of this weight on my own, and if in two months he is still unable to reach my port, I will reconsider having a second surgery.

So now instead of having the band help me with weight loss, I will have to rely on sheer will power to lose some of this weight, just so that my doctor can reach my port. It's really tough, but I have to do it! I will now be doing 100 abdominal crunches every day to strengthen the muscle wall below the port. ::

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Ang1982 · 04-09-2008, 12:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Puddin499

I know this thread is old, but I found it while trying to see if anyone else out here had this same problem.

My doctor also has a very difficult time reaching my port. He tried several times in his office, then next at the hospital under fluoroscopy. It was unsuccessful. He told me that I will have to have another surgery (although minor and outpatient) to move the port to a different location at the breastbone area.

Well, when I got home after discussing it with him at his office, I had decided that I really don't want to have another surgery. Instead, I want to try to take off some of this weight on my own, and if in two months he is still unable to reach my port, I will reconsider having a second surgery.

So now instead of having the band help me with weight loss, I will have to rely on sheer will power to lose some of this weight, just so that my doctor can reach my port. It's really tough, but I have to do it! I will now be doing 100 abdominal crunches every day to strengthen the muscle wall below the port. ::

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Good luck Puddin! You can do this. How frustrating that must have been to hear that from the doctor. I found during my "non restriction" time without having a fill that was working for me that the best thing I could do was log/journal my food. Good luck!

faithmd · 04-09-2008, 12:29 PM

I went yesterday for my first fill (after ten months) and they were unable to fill in the office secondary to it being too deep as well. My next step is fluoro, hopefully next week. If they can't get it there, I'm not having it moved, I'll struggle and buckle back down and lose some weight. It hurt too much having it placed the first time to have it moved...

lucymae · 04-10-2008, 12:26 AM

My port is only a few inches from my underwire bra and it is uncomfortable. If you can, keep it where it is. I don't like where he put mine and I don't think it is going to get any better for me. The doctor even commented that he sure put my port up high. I always feel like my ribs are catching on it.

Puddin499 · 04-10-2008, 09:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lucymae

My port is only a few inches from my underwire bra and it is uncomfortable. If you can, keep it where it is. I don't like where he put mine and I don't think it is going to get any better for me. The doctor even commented that he sure put my port up high. I always feel like my ribs are catching on it.

Lucymae,

Wow, that really sounds uncomfortable, and I feel sorry that you have to go through that. I heard that the port at that location will stick out some, and someone even commented that theirs looked like a "button." Are you able to see yours? While it is most important to have the band work for you, and the doctor to be able to have access to the port, I don't think that I would want my port to be sticking out (I remember the nasty egg-shaped swelling I had for weeks where the port was implanted originally). I think have enough body image issues as it is!

But the main reason is that I really don't want another operation, period. If I can work off a few more pounds and strengthen my abdominal muscles, I think that's a far better option than having another surgery,and it's certainly worth the try!

I called the doctor's office Monday to let them know of my decision to not have another surgery to move the port, but I haven't heard back from the doctor yet. I am awaiting his professional advice. I will keep you posted!

lucymae · 04-10-2008, 10:48 AM

I can't see a "button" but I can sure feel it. If I am bending over it feels like it is catching on my ribs. And of course this first fill has it sore again. I wish he had put it down farther. I am on my third day of liquids from my first fill so I am "grumpy" too. LOL

Puddin499 · 04-11-2008, 10:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lucymae

I can't see a "button" but I can sure feel it. If I am bending over it feels like it is catching on my ribs. And of course this first fill has it sore again. I wish he had put it down farther. I am on my third day of liquids from my first fill so I am "grumpy" too. LOL

Hi Lucymae,

That's what I'm afraid of ... the discomfort in that area. I really feel sorry for you! I hope that in time it will get better. When were you banded?

I spoke to my doctor's office assistant yesterday, and she told me that while he's happy that I'm really motivated to lose this weight, my plan to lose some weight first so he can reach my port will not work. She explained that the adipose tissue is too deep. My rationale is that if I can lose some of this abdominal fat, won't the port be easier to access? Since I don't understand fully, I am going to make an appointment to see him next week to get a better understanding. Anyhow, it appears that I will have no other alternative other than to have a revision surgery.

lucymae · 04-11-2008, 10:07 PM

I was banded on 2-18-08. I think my weight is coming off slowly. I lost 5 pounds in my 4 weeks of "bandster hell". I am hoping it will come off faster now.

Vdander · 04-11-2008, 11:23 PM

This thread is interesting to me because last month I went for a fill and the first doctor deadened me twice, but couldn't find the spot on my port to fill it, even though I was standing in front of a fluoroscope and drinking barium. So, she asked me who usually fills my band and then called that doctor to come down. I waited for him and he deadened me a third time, but he also had a very difficult time finding the top of the port as I, again, stood in front of a fluoroscope drinking barium. Finally, instead of having me swallow more barium, he told me to swallow my saliva and acted as though he was filling me, but I felt no more restriction than I had when I came in. I followed a liquid diet for the rest of the day, but still felt no restriction. The next day, I felt like I had less restriction than I had the day before the "fill" so to to test it out, I ate minestrone soup with a small loaf of french bread and had no problem at all. In addition, my port was very swollen for a few days, much more than usual. Since that time, I've been gaining weight because I have very little restriction. I think that the second doctor may have put the saline in my tissues instead of in my port. I'm very upset because Thursday, 4/10/08, was my 1 year anniversary of banding and I weigh 187---I weighed 196 on the day of my surgery last year! I thought I'd be closer to my goal of 100 pounds by now...:-(