STATS?

Does anyone have info on the stats after surgery? How long people usually keep the weight off? Which type of procedure works best? Which surgery is the easiest to get over? etc.

Hi, There is no way anyone can tell you exactly what you are asking. As far as how long you keep the weight off depends on the person getting the surgery and if you follow your Drs orders. It is possible to gain your weight back if you don't. I can tell you about my experience. I am 9 weeks out from having Lap. Rny. I am 47lbs down since my picture. The first 3 weeks I considered pure Hell. I could not sleep in my own bed, my recliner was my best friend. Surgery makes eating an adventure. I have no regrets on my decision to do surgery. Life gets better everyday. God Bless Your Journey, Sheila

This is one of my pet peeves. If this surgery has been around for so long, why aren't there more statistics regarding the people who have had it? The most honest answer I was able to garner came from the psychotherapist who did my psyche evaluation. She said that it was her experience that fully HALF of weightloss surgery patients experienced complications of some sort. I had lap RNY on 5/24/04 and had no pain, no nausea and no dumping. At my two week followup I had lost 19 pounds. I have not weighed myself since then and refuse to do so. I've found that the scale can be the biggest enemy of weight loss - either with or without the surgery, so I stay away from it. I will weigh in at the doctor's office when I have my next appointment on 7/6/04. I have followed the doctor's food list to the letter. I exercise daily and try to push myself just a little bit the further out from surgery I get. I think the reason we can't find substantial statistics on this surgery has to do with money. There are now more people having this surgery done than ever before. If statistics were to show that half the people having it have complications, or half of the people having it regain their weight in 2-4 years, then how many people would opt out of it? I don't know, I'm a skeptic when it comes to the medical profession, and all this may not be true. The statistics may be overwhelmingly positive, but if they are, I'm wondering where they are??? Good luck and let me know if you find a source of good information.

One of the best places to get information is from the American Society of Bariatric Surgeons. I think their website is ASBS.org I just got back from their annual convention and they are really attempting to get the best research data out in circulation.