Banded Together

Had the surgery on June 19 in the Kansas office, and all is well, except for one thing. I’ve been noticing occasional pain that goes along my left shoulder. When I talked to my doctor, he said that it was caused by the swelling and carbon dioxide putting a little pressure on the diaphragm which then can pinch other nerves.

It comes and goes, but I wondered if anyone else had noticed pinched nerve pains like these and what their experience has been. I’ll try both the prescription Tylenol I’ve got and some over-the-counter anti-inflammatories, but I suppose it’s got me a little concerned.

Does it ever happen that the lapband is pinching nerves and has to be moved? That would really be annoying to deal with, but I’d like to know so I can get ready for it if it happens.

I only had a few days of gas pain and it more of an annoyance than a pain - I know, I’m one of the lucky ones.  From what I have read on other web-sites, it is not all that uncommon to have the pain for a few weeks.  Some people even have it pop up for a day or so months after surgery.  I have never heard of anyone having their band removed because of this.  Have you tried Gas-X strips or Maalox as I have heard that those help some people?

Congratulations on taking the first step to the new you!

I hadn’t thought of trying something like Gas-X. Maybe that’s a way to go. On the whole, I was congratulating myself for having such a good recovery. And in most ways, that’s true. Well, I’ll see how it is for the next day or so, and if it’s still bugging me, I’ll try the over-the-counter gas remedies. Thanks.

How are you feeling today?  I had the chest & shoulder pain for about 3 weeks.  It also moved into my neck.  Walking is a good way to get rid of it too. Hope you are doing better.

Thanks for asking. It still comes and goes. I’m trying to make a little study of when it comes - what time of day, whether it has anything to do with what I eat ... that kind of thing. It seems like it’s at its worst mid-afternoon and often clears up by night. I’ve got my one-week follow-up in a few hours, so I’ll ask them about it.

If it’s just what you get for 2 or 3 weeks, I’m willing to deal with it. It’s not that bad, I’m just a bit of a pain wimp.

Here’s a follow-up. Back from the appointment, and the doctor confirmed that yes, this left side neck and shoulder pain is a very common side effect of the surgery. It turns out that neither prescription nor over-the-counter pain meds will help, so that’s the bad news. (Didn’t ask about Gas-X.) But the best part is that it goes away in 1-2 weeks.

Just thought I’d pass that along for the sake of posterity.