Dr Foote/MMPC

Hi! I'm wondering if anyone here has gone in for DS surgery & come out w/VSG? I'm going in for DS but am concerned #1-because I know how much Dr Foote loves the sleeve(he told me he does them more often than RNY's now), & #2-a comment from someone on another board about him trying to talk them into VSG instead of DS, #3-he asked me if it was ok if I only ended up w/a VSG in case he was unable to do the DS. I'm not against the VSG in any way, it's definately my 2nd choice for wls, but I really want the DS. Thank you for any help &/or comments! Lisa

 

PS-I also posted this on the VSG board

Did he give you any reasons for why he may not be able to do the DS?

If Part A & Part B don't fit together comfortably, he won't stretch things to make a DS work. It's completely understandable & legit, I think. I have just heard a lot about him pushing the VSG or doing the DS in 2 parts instead of 1, of which won't work w/me since I'm a lightweight w/no co-morbidities so insurance wouldn't cover the 2nd part unless I were to get my BMI back up-who wants to do that after losing???!!!  Just simply for lack of long term results w/VSG, I'd rather have the whole DS the first time. Plus, I'm more comfortable w/the entire eating plan & vitamin regime of a DSer. It's a personal preference for me.

OOPS - Read the question wrong.  Sorry, I have no info to share. Good Luck though. Gwen

It was for this reason that I opted to go with Dr. Kemmeter instead of Dr. Foote. I had originally scheduled with Dr. Foote.. but his appointments didn't fit with my schedule. I was working on getting all the days lined up to have off work, etc.. then I asked about Dr. Kemmeter. His schedule worked better with mine. Dr. Kemmeter ALSO said that he may not be able to do the DS for me if my intestines wouldn't reach to where they needed, etc. but he knew that I was there for the DS. The day of the surgery, about an hour into my surgery, he sent word out to my family that I was in fact getting the entire DS with no problem.  I know 3 other patients of Dr. Kemmeter who had the DS personally.. and they are very happy with him. I talk to one person on here who had Dr. Foote, and she may be the person you are speaking of.. up to the day of surgery and even preoperatively, he was wanting the VSG for her. While that is definitely a valid surgery, if that's not what you are looking for.. it's not what you're looking for.  Good luck. Whether you choose Dr. Foote or another doctor in the practice, it is a Center of Excellence.. so you are in good hands.

Nope -- wanted / expected the DS, and that is what Dr. Kemmeter did for me.  Like Jodie mentioned, there could be an issue with the intestine length not allowing for that portion of the surgery to be done, and the surgeon won't know that until he is in there.  However, I have had no intestinal or abdominal issues or surgeries prior to the DS, so really didn't feel this would be an issue -- and it wasn't. I have heard that Dr. Foote does do a number of DS surgeries in two parts.  Why?  I don't know.  I have no qualms that he is an excellent surgeon, so you would really need to drill him as to why he has this reputation.  As a surgeon, who knows that putting someone under and opening them up twice is not ideal, I would hope that the reasoning would not be to get two surgical fees -- I don't know about the cost of VSG, but do know that my longer & more complicated DS netted MMPC the same money from insurance as a RnY would have. If you stick with Foote, make certain that your expectations are VERY clear to him.  If there isn't a way for him to perform the intestinal portion of your DS while you're in surgery -- that option won't exist in the future either.  He should know that you are expecting this all to be done at one time, unless medically impossible, not in two phases. I am one of the Dr. Kemmeter cheerleaders, and would definitely encourage you to consult with him if you are not feeling comfortable with what you will wake up with from Dr. Foote.

Thank you so much for your replies! I apologize for not getting back sooner-it's been a busy week & weekend! I think, for now, I'll stick w/Dr Foote but if something doesn't feel right, I definately won't hesitate to switch(no pun intended), that's very good advice. Until next time(or my next freak out)....... Lisa