PPI/antacids
My surgeon had me do a swallow test, and when that test was not 100% pass required me to have a scope done. That test passed. In my case I never had a problem with GERDS. I do know what eating too much felt like, or the wrong food, but those were countable on one hand experiences with a direct cause.
If the scope test had not shown that my esophagus was behaving properly, then my surgeon would have insisted on RNY vs the sleeve.
In the case of PPIs my surgeon has us take them for 90 days. Then have us see if we can do with out them. I'm not past the 90 days so don't know what my body will do.
Best of luck!
It is better to travel and get lost...
Than never to travel at all.
on 8/21/17 5:21 am, edited 8/20/17 10:24 pm
It's the biggest drawback to VSG in my opinion. My surgeon has his patients on a PPI for two weeks and then expects them to follow up with their PCP if heartburn is still an issue. I unfortunately don't have health insurance or a PCP these days. I seem to be one of the unlucky half that develop new onset gerd. For me it was present immediately post-op, before I took a single bite of food. Like you I only got heartburn pre-op if I ate the wrong foods too close to bedtime. These days I take 1 Nexium every 3 days and use DGL and tums in between as needed. I keep trying to drop the nexium and am hoping I will eventually be successful. I wake up with a swollen esophagus from unfelt heartburn in my sleep about once every other week and am honestly very scared about esophageal damage. On the other hand, I was only a few lbs away from morbid obesity 5 months ago and now I have a normal BMI.
Ugggg I guess the good outweighs the bad. Awesome that you have lost so much weight! Thanks for sharing your experience with me.
My surgeon never prescribed me any PPI post surgery, which I now know is strange. I did not have any history GERD. Literally, the only heartburn I ever had was during pregnancy and very briefly when I took a med that had HB as a side effect.
I've not, so far, had any issues. The only reflux I've noticed is if I eat Halotop Ice Cream immediately before bed it will want to come back up (without any burning). Funny enough my non-VSG husband has the same issue, so I wonder if it's the sugar alcohols in it or something.
Personally, if I had a history of GERD at ALL I would have gone with RNY. That seemed terrifying before VSG but now after I think it would have been fine.
VSG: 1/17/17
5'7" HW: 283 SW: 229 CW: 135-140 GW: 145
Pre-op: 53 M1: 22 M2: 12 M3: 12 M4: 8 M5: 10 M6: 11 M7: 5 M8: 6 M9-M13: 15-ish
LBL/BL w/ Fat Transfer 1/29/18
I hope I have good results like you! I'm nervous! I do get heartburn, but my mom who has had RNY gets really bad heartburn too. I have no official diagnosis.