Pre-op Consult Questions

I've got a pre-op consultation scheduled with my surgeon 1/3/05. What questions did you ask, or wish you'd asked, at your pre-op visit? Vickie J.

I checked out your profile and you have already been part of a seminar with this doctor. I am sure he gave you a lot of informtion at that time. Make sure you are aware of his "track" records and his reputation. How many patients has he lost due to wls and why. What type of follow up after surgery does he have? Is there a nutrionist? My doctor has a years program from surgery that has really helped, especially the few months after surgery when everything is so new. Make sure there is someone available to you after surgery to answer questions and minor problems as they come up.

Vickie- I have a list of questions I am planning to ask-- I will send it to you.

In case anyone else is interested here is my current list. I am always adding to it. email me and I will send it to you in pdf format so you can print it out and take it with you. [email protected] 1. I have read a great deal about blood clots. Is there something about this surgery that makes patients more prone to develop blood clots, or is the risk the same as for other surgical procedures? 2. Of the people with whom you consult what is the percentage that are not candidates for this surgery? What is your refusal rate? 3. I have read of people who develop complications years after surgery some of which have died. What is the realistic complication window? 4. What safeguards are in place to prevent the misfiring of the staple gun? 5. How many surgeries have you performed? How many were proctored? 6. What is your training specific to obesity surgery? 7. What is your mortality rate? 8. What is your complication rate? 9. How often do your patients experience ulcers, leaks and infections? 10. Do you perform the surgery using techniques other than laparoscopic surgery? 11. I have seen a reference to doctors performing staged surgeries can you explain this practice and do you perform it? 12. Average hospital stay? How long is the incision? 13. Do you suture internal spaces in the intestines to prevent an internal hernia? (After gastric bypass surgery, fat starts to disappear, allowing the intestines to become more mobile. If the hernia spaces exist, hernias are more likely to occur. That's why bariatric surgeons now suture those spaces closed, which should substantially decrease the likelihood of an internal hernia, he said.) 14. Do you administer blood thinners prior to surgery to help prevent blood clots? 15. I understand the difference between a distal and proximal bypass. It has to do with the amount of intestine that is by-passed. My question is what determines which procedure you perform?