VBG Revision to RNY scheduled for July 16, 2012

I've been waiting for this since the first week in December.  At least that was my first visit with Dr. Glas****'s office.  I have been wanting this revision for a couple of  years.  I was turned down 2 years ago by another Surgeon for whom I will not mention because of the Psych Doctor he used.  He was young, arrogant and full of himself.  I took 3 tests that took approximately 2 to 3 hours for which I passed pretty well but when this Doctor would ask a question and if I didn't answer the question the way he wanted he would get angry and then after 30 minutes of it I got angry and I got turned down by him.  This time I had to see the Psych Doctor for this Surgeon twice so he could gather my records from a couple of places so he could check out all the medication's I was taking and had taken.  I past with flying colors.  My biggest wait was for my insurance company to agree to this surgery as my Surgeon is a provider but the hospital is not.  My husbnd called the Union Rep and we finally got them to agree to this surgery not only for myself but for 2 others that had been waiting as long if not longer than myself.

I am so excited that I am about to start my new life and eventually be able to live a more productive life and feel much better about myself but I am slso told that this revision surgery is very serious and can take up to 8 hours and I'm not looking forward to that and I don't know anyone that would be.  I'm so happy that I finally got my date and it will be here before I know it.

I am so happy for you. I too am having a VBG to RNY revision on 7/16. However my surgeon said the surgery will only take about 3 1/2 hours, do you know why they said it would take so long for you? I wish you much success!!!

I'm thinking it is because of all my co-morbidities, I've had several surgeries on my stomach area beginning with my 1st of 3 umbilical hernia repairs, then I had my tubes tied in the same exact spot and then I've had two bladder repairs but one was vaginally and the second was from the outside down low under my overhang as I call it.  I have also had 3 back surgeries, 2 sinus surgeries, an implant installed to help with my pain and it didn't work and I had it removed. I've also had an elbow and knee surgery and I'm sure I've missed a couple.  Since my back surgeries failed I am in chronic pain daily and have two more disks ready to blow and my neurologist wrote a letter of referral for me to get this revision because in my condition I am too High Risk for another back surgery.  Between the 1st and 2nd back surgery I believe the first surgeon screwed up and missed several pieced of disk and they landed on my nerve.  Since this all happened during Christmas and New Years I had to wait from 12-7-1999 to Jan 4, 2000 for the second surgery and in the meantime I ended up with nerve damage all the way down my leg and into my foot - left)  I have been forced to take pain medication for quite a long time and at this time I take 200 mg of morphine twice a day every 12 hours and now have some morphine to take during breakthrough that doesn't stretch out 12 hours it there's immediately to help me out with pain.  I am so hoping that getting off 100 pound or more will help with the pain and I'm hoping to cut down on the pain medicine and I can live a more normal life.  As it is now I lay in bed most of the time.  If I go shopping I'm laid up for days.  Getting the little amount of exercise is very hard but we do have a treadmill.  Maybe all that is why they have said what they have.  I won't know for sure till I see the surgeon for the 1st time Friday the 13th.  My first appointment with them I seen the dietitian, the PAC and the insurance clerk.  They I was on hold since last December waiting for my insurance co to say yes to this surgery at the hospital where he does his surgeries and they are not providers for UnitedHealthCare - They finally approved it then I had to see a Psych which I passed, cardiologist, pulmonolist, x-ray of chest, ultrasound of stomach and lots of blood.  I have bad sleep apnea and have a BIPAP Machine I am unable to wear and the pulmonologist understands why I can't wear it with the settings I have to have it on.  My surge ion usually demands his patients to wear their machines and since the Pulmonology Doc ok'd me for surgery I'm not sure how that will be handled.  Where do you live.  Do you have a friend on here that will post about you while in surgery to let everyone know how you are doing yet?  I don't - I just figured out tonight how to put my surgery date on here.  Nice to hear from you and Hope you do well and I'm sure you will - it does bother me that they are putting me down for 8 hours for surgery and I was told I'd have a feeding tube and drainage tube and might be taking them home with me.  I do know I've been told revisions stay in the hospital longer than people getting their first surgery - were you told that?  Sorry for all the misspelled words.

I visited with Dr. Glas**** today and was told I will wake up with a drainage tupe and a feeding tube.  I will come hope with both and I could stay in the hospital up to 5 days.  It all depends on what they find like scar tissue that will make the surgery more involved and take several hours.  They are allowing 8 hours for my surgery but it could take 3 to 8 hours he said.  My first two weeks after surgery I am to have nothing by mouth everything is to go through the feeding tube.  I've not read of anyone else that had to have all this but I believe Dr. Glas**** is being prepared and trying to prevent any problems by doing all of this.  He really seems to know his stuff and was very down to earth and made sure I knew what I was.  Tomorrow I drink my Bowel prep of Citroma, 12 oz and I also start my two different antibiotics on Sunday - they are one days worth.  I was given a liquid pain medicine but that scares me as I take 200 mg morphine every 12 hours for chronic back pain and I sure the heck hope this isn't what he plans on me using at home after surgery as it isn't anywhere as strong as what I take on a daily dose - which I've been taking for 5 years now.  I might have to go back to the pain patches as they will be the only medcine that will work for me after the bypass.  My next concern is the patches didn't work when they decided to try the morphoine.  I lived on oxycontin 40 mg every 12 houjrs when I switched to several different forms of pain meds till morphjine helped the most.  I have to go into the hospital anytime Sunday to have my blood drawn for Type and Screen/crossmatch blood test.  Dr. Glas**** also asked me if I had been informed that my blood work taken for the past cuuple years point to the start of diabetes for which My family Doctor did not mention.  That was a shocker but hopefully with this surgery I won't even have to begin t reatment.  I am also to bring my BiPaP machine with me to the hospital even though I have been unable to use it but he said they would keep me doped up enough at first that maybe I will be able to keep it on and the air blowing past the mask won't keep me awake or wake me up.

Only two days left then I will be starting a new life.  I'll post again when I'm home.