Hi all,
I know there are lots of posts around tips procedures which I have read through...but I am wondering how long people have had their tips in and are they meant to be a permenant thing or just as a precursor to transplant?
Thanks so much, Gemma
They can be both... If they are permanent they would be changed every so often
Thank you. I did not realise they could be permanent or removed
Yes sometimes they only required short term... Is it yourself having one?
Yes it would be me- Possibly having one.......I have liver damage from childhood chemo which is worsening (varices, meds, banding etc etc) and all talk of tips has been as a ‘tide me over’ and likely need a transplant. Just changed consultants (retirement) and talk is now tips as solution. It’s thrown me a bit. You know how you have to psych yourself up for things. I mean it’s good if this is the case, I think, but Julie’s story below is first positive long-term I have read and not wanted to curl up and cry!
My TIPS is permanent. I have Budd chiari- all the veins in my liver were blocked so had to have TIPS to allow blood to flow through. Was told at the time if it didn’t work was liver Transplant time. Thankfully it did work and I’m still here 12 years later having had the TIPS opened up once following blockage and generally fit and healthy. Was literally a lifesaver for me.
It's really nice to read such a positive outcome. I hope things continue to go well for you
That is really good to hear, stay well
Julie, just wondering about your recover following tips? Did you suffer with HE at all?
Hi. I’ve been lucky in that haven’t had HE. Apparently my age - was 36 and the fact that I’d gone from being fine to extremely ill in less than 3 weeks meant I was less likely to have HE or so they said. I can be forgetful at times now but think that’s more down to menopause and anaemia.
For me I didn’t have a choice my liver had started failing completely and my kidneys had gone into failure. I looked the colour of Bart Simpson and I couldn’t breathe because of the ascites flooding my lungs. It literally saved my life.
You have to stay positive. I work on the basis it will be all ok and I’ll deal with it if it isn’t .
I hope you are ok whether you have tips or not 🙂
Thank you. I’m 38, kids under 10 and single parent...hanging on to hope!! You are right, a positive mind makes the difference. Looks like it happening in january. Mine is because I keep bleeding, even with banding and beta blockers, from an area of gastropathy. Hoping tips will completely stop the bleeding without comprising anything else! Take care, great to hear a good outcome x x
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