Dr. Oh and DS
I had proximal gastric bypass with Dr. Oh in December, 2007. I think Dr. Oh is an excellent surgeon. He is definitely no-nonsense and very professional. If you're looking for a lot of "warm fuzzies" - you won't get them from him. :) But in my opinion, you will get a fantastic surgeon! And to me that was the most important criteria. His partner, Dr. Hirai, is much more personable. I've seen Dr. Hirai for most of my post-op appointments. I didn't consider the DS due to insurance parameters so am not familiar with his rationale on that. Have you gone to his orientation/seminar? Or seen it on-line? You might want to call his office and speak to the staff there - they may be able to let you know a little more. But I suspect they may say it's something you and the dr. need to discuss at your first appointment. Whatever you decide, I wish you all the best on this journey. Don't hesitate to PM me if you have other questions or whatever. I think you'll also find lots of good support, encouragement and friendship on this site! Take care...
~Nancy~
Hi and welcome to the board! I don't know anything about the local dr's but I do know that on DS board someone has a list of surgeons that have preforemed the surgery fairly frequently. You will also get a lot of advise on how to get the surgery you want! I don't know if tyour lower BMI will have any affect or not, I think it will depend on you co-morbs.
Good luck!
Good luck!
Amy Farrah Fowler
on 7/22/08 5:59 pm
on 7/22/08 5:59 pm
I didn't get my DS from Dr Oh (in fact, I didn' t realize there were any Dr.s in WA that actually did the DS, but it's been a while since I did my initial research). I may be off, but usually the DS guidelines are for your BMI to be over 35 with a comorbidity, or over 40 without comorbids. You might want to ask on the DS board as I've seen it posted there many times, but my memory stinks.
I had an open (my choice) DS with Dr. Oh this past May. As others have said, if you want warm fuzzies, you won't get them from him, but he is an excellent surgeon. It's difficult to get him to agree to a DS, but I think that's because he wants to make sure you know what you're getting in to and wants to be sure you understand the vitamin regimen you will be required to adhere to. Go in prepared, on an intellectual basis, for his questions. Do your research. Also, he is very conservative, so expect at least a two week pre-op SFCL diet continuing for 4 weeks after. I am very pleased with my results. Even though I have a long common channel of 150cm (also at my request) I have lost almost 60 pounds since the beginning of May.