Revision

Has anyone in here ever had a revision surgery?  If so, is it better to have the same surgeon do the revision?  I'm hoping to have Dr. Huse since he did my surgery 10 yrs. ago, but I'm not sure how long it'll take for him to schedule me.

I will be done with my 6 month program for MPlan on Oct. 16th when I have my family appt. with the psychologist.  If she hadn't changed my appt. I would've been done Sept. 25th.  Roger (heads up the therapy group I have to go to) says that he doesn't think I would have to go to same surgeon, but I'd read from other info that I should.  I really like Dr. Huse, but don't want to wait forever.  I had to go to the 18 month thing that MPlan had before they changed it to the 6 month.  Then they said I had to go to it, too.  I'm glad that I am, because I have gotten alot more helpful information.  I am getting kinda impatient though.  Patience has never been one of my strong points.  LOL Candy

 

Candy,      I had a SRVG at Winona in 1995 by Dr. Huse (he was there then) and then in July of this year I had a RUY (open revision) by Dr. Huse...he is just the best and a wonderful surgeon..Yes, I had a good experience with Dr. Huse the first time so I looked forward to my revision surgery by him. It went great and I have lost 43.5 lbs in 9 weeks and 5 days..I am happy with my loss and it has shown up in inches more than lbs.  If I can continue to loose steadily like this I will be at goal well before a year. His office staff (Nicole especially) is beyond the best..and St. V's Bariatric Center is where I went for care and surgery. However Dr. Huse office is at Clarion North so I am sure they have a good pre and post care program..I heard M-Plan is going out of business..how is that going to affect your surgery?...Good luck in the future..fight for Dr. Huse..you won't be disappointed...Linda

Hi, Linda! I had my VBG at Winona in 1997.  Dr. Huse was my doctor then also and I really liked him also.  So, you haven't had any complications?  I'm nervous about possibly having to cut the scar tissue around the organs.   Did you lose most of your weight the first time and gain part or all of it back?  I lost 80 pounds and have gained around half or a little more back. I have alot of other health problems that I did not have 10 yrs. ago - diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol and tryglicerides and degenerative disc disease.  It seems like the list goes on and on.  LOL   I originally had tried to do this 2 yrs. ago.  At that time MPlan wanted us to see our PCP for 18 months, which I did, and then found out that there were other things I should've been doing - food log, etc.  By the time the 18 mo. thing was done they had started the 6 month program.  I hear that as soon as everything is done that we get approved pretty quickly.  I should've been done Sept. 25th, but they changed my psych appt. to Oct. 16th.  I talked to Dr. Huse a couple of years ago before he started at Clarion.  They were going to open Clarion North that Dec.  Of course insurance didn't approve me then.  MPlan isn't exactly going out of business, but they're not going to do group insurance anymore.  I guess they're going to just do Seniors - Medicare type insurance.  I don't think that our contract runs out until March, but I'm not sure.  My husband still hasn't asked them at work.  The earliest it will run out is in Dec.  They were saying that everyone in our 12 week therapy group should be able to get our surgery done before it runs out. Everyone in this group has MPlan.  Some of them work for Clarion or the state.  I'm not sure how long it'll take before Dr. Huse will have an opening after I'm finished with this 6 month stuff.  But I definitely want him to do it.  I've heard that you should have the same surgeon do a revision anyway.

Thanks alot for the info.  I'm glad to hear that you are doing so well.  It definitely gives me hope!  I'd like to keep in touch with you to see how you're doing.   Candy

Hi Candy, I am scheduled to have a revision from the SRVG (Winona, 1997) to the Duodenal Switch on Oct. 3rd.  Revision is a scary and emotional thing because none of us ever dreamed a WLS would fail us, right?  And now here we are, going through it all again. I had such a great experience with Dr. Inman that I didn't dream of going to anyone else.  When I went to her consulation I thought I was going to be revised to the RNY until I heard her talk about the DS.  I wish I had known about it 10 years ago when I had my first surgery!  I wouldn't going through this now, that's for sure. Make sure whatever surgeon you go to is experienced in revisions as it is a more complicated surgery.  Also, do your research on all available WLS, then choose which one is right for you.  We are so lucky to have so many wonderful surgeons in this area who perform all the "biggies" (DS, RNY, Lapband, VSG, etc) that to not FULLY check out all the options is doing a great disservice to yourself.  And don't base your decision on whomever can "get to you" first.  This is a big decision, and hopefully one you won't ever have to make again in the future.  Base your decision on what is right for you, not the shortest "express lane." If you would like more info on the DS, please visit the DS forum here on OH.  Also check out the VSG, the RNY and the Lapband forums as well.  Learn all you can, then go for what best suits you, even if that means going to a different surgeon. Good luck!

I dont know much about the DS, but I noticed in your  post that if you had known about the DS 10 years ago, you wouldnt be going through this now.  What is different about the DS then the RNY?  I havent really read much on it and I am just curious?  Do you not gain weight back with the DS?

Hi Jenny, The Duodenal Switch is a more malabsorptive procedure than the RNY, so there is a higher percentage of initial weight loss and a higher percentage of weight kept off.  There can be some amount of weight regain (typical 10 - 20lbs) but there are no accounts of a DSer regaining all, or even a large portion, of their lost weight.  Also with the DS a portion of the stomach is removed (which is GREAT since the hunger hormone Ghrelin is produced there) and the pylorus is left intact, which means no dumping.  Because of the limited absorption of fat, DSers can eat a more normal diet, and the rules of the old fashioned diet mentality no longer apply.  (Fat is our friend since we malabsorb so much of it, which means higher levels of satisfaction from food.) Please feel free to come over the DS forum and ask some questions and do some research.  There are a lot of former RNYers who have since been revised to the DS because of weight regain. Take care, and thanks for asking!

My insurance would have paid for the RNY but I chose to self pay for the DS. (This was before the DS was accepted and was still considered "experimental". Medicare changed that and insurance companies changed as well. I just didn't want to wait around. The part about the DS that "sold" me was the chance of regain being almost impossible. That, and you get to eat like a "normal" person. I can drink with meals, drink carbonated beverages, adult beverages and eat sweets when I want them. I do eat more fat simpley because I don't absorb most of it. My labs are great! The DS actually REMOVES the portion of the stomach that produces the hunger hormone ghrelin. I can't believe that I can put down my fork when I'm satisfied. No one can tell that I've had surgery when eating because I am just a normal person, at a normal weight. I know people on the DS board that have had their RNY scheduled....only to back out and get approved for the DS. If you qualify for WLS, you qualify for the DS. Choose your surgery type....then choose your surgery. Good luck to you! Dianne SW / CW/ GW  5'10" 306/ 150/ 165

I had a great experience with Dr. Huse.  He does revisions and I have alot of confidence in him.  One of my problems is that our insurance company is MPlan, which is going to quit insuring group plans.  I believe that the contract runs out in Dec.  I'm not sure what insurance we'll have then, but my guess is Anthem - BC/BS.  My husband works at Chrysler here in Kokomo and that's what we had before we decided to change to MPlan when offered.  With BC/BS we'll have to pay all or most of our office calls.  With MPlan we had a $10 co-pay, but that's probably going to be gone.  I know that MPlan is really harder to get approval than BC/BS, but I'm almost through this 6 month program now and they'll probably approve it quickly once I fini****  I just hope that Dr. Huse doesn't take 3 months (which I've heard was true in the past) to be able to do the surgery.   I have heard a little about the DS, but not too much.  Did you lose all of the weight you wanted to lose before?  I lost all but 13 lbs., but then started gaining it back.  I gained around 47 lbs. back from the 80 lbs. lost.  The problem I have now is that I have alot more medical problems that I didn't have back then.  I hate having diabetes and I'm hoping that I can get off my meds with this surgery.  I take alot of medication and just want to get off them because I forget to take them half the time and I know that it's not good to do that. I want to wish you "good luck" on your surgery on the 3rd.  I hope that you do really well with the DS. Thanks for the info.

Candy

Hi Candy, I lost about 105lbs with the SRVG but then started gaining back.  I have since gained all of my lost weight back. Actually the intestinal only part of the DS is performed on diabetics as it has a 98% cure rate of diabetes.  The DS is gaining ground all the time, but unfortunately because it is a more technically challenging procedure, not a lot of surgeons want to do it, nor do they want to take the time out of their busy practices to learn it.  There are about 75 - 80 surgeons who perform it, and we are so lucky to have one of them right here in Indy - Dr. Inman. Good luck with your insurance and I hope it goes quickly for you! Take care

I had my revision in Jan of this year and went to Mexico to have it done...big mistake....Dr. Huse is a good Dr. and if i were you i would stay with him. Good Luck to you Val