Editor,
A 68 year old lady was referred to gastroenterology by the respiratory physicians after originally presenting with cough and dyspnoea, worsened by lying down and eating. She hadundergone laparoscopic gastric band insertion in France nine years before and was experiencing symptoms of postprandial reflux and dysphagia for the past two years. Computed tomography of the chest showed the gastric band in situ and marked oesophageal dilatation with appearances ‘consistent with marked achalasia’.
Urgent upper GI endoscopy confirmed a grossly dilated oesophagus with a large quantity of fluid residue leading to procedure abandonment. Water-soluble contrast imaging revealed gross oesophageal dilatation with beaked tapering at the level of the gastric band.(Figure)
Fig 1.
Still from water-soluble contrast swallow, showing gastric band (white arrow) causing incomplete obstruction of the oesophagus, leading to marked dilation and tortuosity of the structure (black arrow).
She was referred to the upper gastrointestinal surgical team for review, at which point the band was deflated percutaneously. Her symptoms improved markedly and after lengthy discussion around the benefits and hazards of keeping the gastric band she elected to undergo laparoscopic removal. This was performed without complication. The operative finding of anterior band slippage explained the symptoms on presentation. Contrast swallow imaging performed one day following band removal showed a marked improvement in her oesophageal emptying although the oesophagus remaineddilated. On review two weeks later she reported eating a near normal diet and was almost symptom free.
In a series of 126 patients having laparoscopically inserted gastric bands, anterior slippage was detected in ten (7.9%) individuals.1 There is no bariatric surgery service in NorthernIreland and the number of individuals who have undergone surgical intervention in United Kingdom or abroad is unquantified. This case highlights that a lack of such a service can delay diagnosis and treatment of associated complications. The proportion of obese adults in Northern Ireland is comparable with nationwide rates at 24%.2 In a retrospective review in 2009, Arias et al3 identified five out of 257 patients (1.9%) presenting with megaoesophagusfollowing gastric band insertion. The mean postoperative time to complication was significantly shorter than in our patient at 32 months (range 24-36) and in all cases the band was removed. With this unusual delay it was important that we excluded oesophageal cancer with careful endoscopy.
Given the lower complication rates and proven superiority of gastric reduction surgery such as Roux-en-Y bypass and sleeve gastrectomy to gastric band insertion in sustaining weight loss, type 2 diabetes control and hypertension remission, the incidence of band insertion continues to reduce with time.4, 5 Despite this, as the risk of complications of gastric band insertion remains a possibility we urge all healthcare practitioners to be vigilant and preferably to refer to an upper gastrointestinal service with a specialist interest in bariatric intervention.
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