MEXICO DS SURGERY?? Anyone had it done there!?

I have the sleeve my ins wont cover

revision to DS. I am nervous about mexico but Ive seen on here from time to time people go have surgery there and are fine. Please anyone who has had surgery there. Let me knkw your TRUE experience. What surgery you had? Who performed it? Where in mexico? The date? My husband is freaking out that I am considering it. Help. Thanks to all. 

There are many people who have had DS in Mexico, and hopefully some of them will answer you. There are 2 surgeons there who are very well established as Ds surgeons - Dr. Ungson and more recently Dr. Aceves. You do need to be very careful about surgery there, and these are the only DS surgeons in Mexico that most of us would recommend. You do NOT need to go through any medical tourism company, you can contact their offices directly to make all arrangements.

Larra

 

ps I'm also sending you a pm

Here is a copy of the PM I sent to someone yesterday of my experience with Dr. Aceves...........

I cant say enough about the care I reserved there. Nothing like in the US. I told my husband I wished I could go there whenever I need to go to a hospital, for anything.....lol. He is very conservative with his DS surgeries. He wanted to give me a 125c common channel, but I talked him into 100c. I had done my research, and I knew I had a lot of weight to take off, and I wanted to make sure I could do it..... He and Dr. Campos are so compationate, and you can tell that they know what they are doing. I do suggest taking a laptop, most the channels of the tv are in Spanish. I have Netflix on my laptop so I brought a long hdmi cord so we could plug into the tv. The hospital does have WIFI.... They clean your room a few times a day.... After awhile my husband would only let them do it once a day..... They are very clean there. Have you went on utube ? you can find patient vidios there. Most are of his gastric sleeve patients he has done. I never found any DS Patients on there of his..... I am having my one year surgiversary next week and I still have a ways to go, but in all honesty, if I never lost another pound I would be ok with it. I look and feel great! The left over skin is another story uhg. I am considering a lower body lift with Dr. Sauceda in mexico, when Im done..... He has quite the following on OH. Because of my experience with Dr. Aceves, Im not afraid one bit.... Its all in the research.... You pay for the best, and you get the best. Ive learned Mexico is nothing to be afraid of as long as you don't take any short cuts and and pay more for the best.......GOODLUCK! P.S like most bariatric surgeons the vitimans they tell you to take are way off... I had mine waiting for me when I got home.....start with vitaladys prepacked until you get your first labs, and then start adjusting.

Dustycroy. How much was your DS? Everything included? And did you do just the DS or the BD-DS?  Hope you dont mind me asking. Im trying to get a good idea of how much $ I am looking at? Also did they do preop stuff in US or how did that all work. So far dr aceves has had awesome reviews. Just not alot of DS patients mostly sleeves only. How much weighthave u lost so far. I have 80 lbs to lose give of take. 

It was 13,000.00. Just had the DS. On the day you arrive in Mexicali, they take you to Almater hospital, and you have all your bloodwork done, and your ekg, then when your done they take you to the hotel. They have three resturants on site there, and you get to eat your last meal. They also give you a pill "Ativan" to take to help you relax, and get a good nights sleep. In the morning they pick everyone up at the hotel. When you all arrive at the hospital, you are checked into your room. Dr. Aceves, and his team come in and talk with you, and tell you what time you will be having surgery. You will also talk with him on the day before when you first arrive.... Ive lost 167 so far. My stats are at the bottom of this post.... He really is amazing... Your in GREAT hands with him...No worries.... I also chose to stay an extra four days after my six night stay in the hospital. I researched and it was suggested to be safe when traveling so far for surgery, just in case anything happens. I stayed in the same hotel as before, and payed for that myself. At the end of the six nights stay in the hospital, I felt safe and, just wanted to go home, but I booked the hotel, and stuck it out... Better safe than sorry.... Mexicali, was a good experience, I really cant say enough about it.....

Dr. Ungson was wonderful and any time I have needed to contact him has been very helpful even forwarding my surgical record for my prior lap band doc to have on file as I see him for my yearly labs.  I felt so much like myself I recently found out I was taking my need for protein to lightly and resulted in some feet swelling after we ruled every thing else out.  I knew better but chose not to take in what I was told.  The best advise is only see who is recommended on this site and of course take your vit and protein as instructed.  Beyond the above I encourage you to get out and enjoy your life as I have!!! 

Good luck and I wish you the best. 

PS Dr U required I stay in Mexico for 10 days to run test and make sure I was OK.  The first 3 days were in the hospital the remainder was in a hotel.  I went solo however they do not suggest it.  I am a very successful nurse and I did not make this decision lightly if that helps at all.  If you reply and I do not respond please do not take it as a bad sign I rarely come on the site but to ask some questions and if I do not get a response that served my health then I post what I find to have helped me.  I do think you have to be like myself and advocate for yourself......... if you do not find the answers that are best for you keep searching and do not stop until your health is the best it can be!

While I didn't have my surgery done in Mexico - I was going to.  I just happened to luck out on a deal in the USA that I happened upon and I met all the criteria for.  So I did it in California - but I was all set to go to Mexico. 

I researched both Dr U and Dr A thoroughly and was ready to do it there.  Dr. U taught Dr. A, and at the time Dr. U was the king of DS surgeries in Mexico.  I think he is the leading surgeon for this in Mexico.  Dr. A studied under him and has been doing this for a while also.  If there isn't a big price difference, I would go with Dr. U.

I will be doing my plastics in Mexico in a couple of years.  The facilities down there are wonderful.

My sister kept telling me that doing this surgery in Mexico was just suicide.  That they don't have the same standards of care and cleanliness as the USA hospitals have...  Well, I did the DS in southern California by one of the leading surgeons in this state and I got a MRSA infection in my incision while at the hospital.  There was a young man with a MRSA infection on his leg next door to me while I was at the hospital... yep, got it from a USA hospital.  I remind my sister of that mess every time she says Mexico is a scary place to have a medical procedure done.

 

Sadly it is common in fact I work for an ins company and I have heard whispers of the government forcing the hospitals to incur the expense rather then Medicare for hospital acquired infection which I think is only right!!!  I am a nurse and I can not tell you how often I washed my hands and my stethoscope however their are some who are not as concerned.  I drive my family nuts as I will not use a dish that has not gone through the dish washer..............  one micro biology class and that cured me.  I am not obsessed just very aware.  I graduated in 1992 and it was when Aids was not fully understood and washing hands was pushed!!!

Like I said in my prior post I am a nurse I do not take medical decision lightly and without a doubt I was in wonderful hands with Dr U.  They have it down like clock work.  Once discharged from the hospital I was visited daily and received a heparin injection to avoid potential blood clots.  They brought me items I could eat and literally leaned on them for the 10 days I was out of the country as I went alone and would do it again.  If I remember right I think they even had a cell phone for patients to use that made international calls and I think I paid like an extra 20 dollars for it. 

Oh one more thing I thought of........ The MD that follows me after my DS was the physician who placed my lap band that obviously was not effective.  He was not for me having the DS he pushed for me to have the sleeve however I stood firm researched the procedure and did what was right for me.  I had to talk him into it but I did not want to have the procedure without knowing I had an MD that knew what he was doing to follow up on my labs.  My PCP just get minor labs that would never be enough  but the MD that follows my labs knows what to order.  Do I some time have to listen to what other professionals think is best for me yes........... but that goes along with the surgery every one seems to think they know what is best hence the reason you have to feel comfortable to advocate for yourself if you decided to have the DS.

Just remember, up keep is money................Happy, but exspensive.