Diagnosis and management of early gastric band slip after laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding

Abstract

Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) used to be a very popular bariatric procedure at a certain time for the treatment of obesity as it has many advantages and is associated with low morbidity and mortality rates. Complications are often late and are rarely seen by general surgeons due to the limited number of patients, and physicians should be aware of the symptoms. We present a case of a 40-year-old female patient who underwent LAGB and was admitted for a huge gastric pouch dilatation on postoperative day 5. She had a history of food consumption on the fourth day after surgery. She was diagnosed with early gastric band slippage (EGBS). The band was repositioned and gastrogastric sutures were placed to prevent reprolapse of the band. The EGBS is an immediate postoperative complication. Diagnosis of EGBS can be made with oral contrast X-ray studies, and surgical intervention is necessary.