Post-op ampullectomy pain

[felicia723]

I am 3 weeks post-op an open surgical ampullectomy. I spent one week in the hospital from surgery, then d/c home. I came home & felt pretty good except for the surgical pain for first two days, and then my prior pain (which was why I had surgery) returned. I have sphincter of oddi dysfunction that goes hand in hand with pancreatitis at times. I have gone through 14 EGD/ERCP also with botox injections. I have had numerous sphincterotomies, also biliary & pancreatic stents. This surgical ampullectomy was my hope, as well as my gastro & surgeons. I know its 3 weeks out & everything is still swollen & healing. However to have this surgical pain, then have the SOD pain return I am very hopeless.. Is it possible for an ampullectomy to fail? I had a CT scan & BW a few days at my local hospital in NJ & everything came back as being normal for surgery (everything in abdomen was swollen). My surgeon is in NYC & he said he believes it is surgery pain and is waiting for 6 week mark to see how things progress.. I am just looking for another opinion. Thank you..

[Christopher R Watters, MD]

You have a very unusual situation and, based on what you are saying, have put together a very knowledgeable team. Everything that you say that has been done is right on the money. I hope it all settles down for you.

[felicia723]

My surgeon and team of doctors agreed the sphincteroplasty would not remain permanent & effective for me, and thought I would be back in pain relatively quickly. I grow scar tissue over an ERCP sphincterotomy in less the one month.  They were confident completely removing the ampulla & moving my ducts would help the pain..I have complete faith in my surgeon, it is my own body I am questioning. My surgeon did not know that my SOD had went into my pancreatic duct the way it did. When they opened me they said there was an extreme amount of scar tissue around my ducts, my pancreatic duct was also not working, when they injected the secretin it did not work. I am going based off memory so forgive me if I am not saying the right things. I have stents in my pancreatic duct to try & help this. I have had no luck with stents in the past through way of ERCP anyway, they usually cause me a lot of pain, so I'd like to blame the stents as well as everything else. Thank you for responding to my post it is much appreciated.