Questions regarding the use of WLS to treat multiple stomach conditions...

I have multiple stomach conditions - gastroparesis, acid reflux, ibs, heital hernia, and a bacterial overgrowth. In addition, I have high blood pressure and high cholesterol. I also am pre-diabetic. Of course, I am over-weight as well - I weight 330 pds and am 5'4". I have recently discovered that doctors have found that a gastric bypass can help and in some cases reverse or eliminate many/all of these issues. I should also mention that I had a kidney transplant back in 1999.

I want to talk to my doctors about it having the surgery now, as I am 41 and no longer bounce back the way I used to. I can feel myself getting weaker. My stomach hurts me in one way or another every day and I am tired of it. I miss work every month and have almost lost my job over it. I routinely go to work after having vomited multiple times that morning. I routinely go to work sick with a cold/flu/etc because I have to save my sick time for my stomach. Even on those days where I don't actually vomit I still suffer through terrible heartburn that 40mg of Prevacid (2 times daily) cannot control. I sleep sitting up on the couch most nights because I wake up throwing up otherwise as my food takes all night to digest - and that's if it digests at all. There are many more symptoms I suffer though on a daily basis that I haven't listed. To be honest, just the stomach issues alone are enough to make me consider the surgery.

So my questions are:

1) Has anyone else on here that has had WL surgery had experience with any of these conditions? If yes, which condition(s) do you have?

2) Did the surgery help?

3) I am specifically worried about the fact that I already have a bacterial overgrowth. Would this keep me from being able to do the surgery?

4) How hard was the surgery physically on you?

Any advice would be appreciated.

My goodness!  You certainly seem to be having a rough time of it!  I had my RNY last October when I was 40 and I've done pretty well with it. My surgery was performed laproscopically, so recovery was pretty straightforward and I was out of the office for two weeks. I discontinued my pain meds after about 4 days, but it did take about a month before I felt like my energy levels were back. 

I hadn't been formally diagnosed with acid reflux, but I think I was heading in that direction. I was having problems where if I laid on my stomach in bed I'd get a bit of stuff coming up and choking me. I haven't had that happen since surgery nor have I had even mild heartburn. I did not have any hernias that needed repair, but I understand hernia repair at the same time is pretty common. 

I don't know about IBS, perhaps someone else will chime in with an experience. I am less experienced about bacterial overgrowth. Is the overgrowth in your lower intestine?  I wonder if a fecal transplant therapy would help with that?  Or if that is contraindicated by the kidney transplant?

RNY folks do need to keep on top of their vitamins and eat protein-forward, again I don't know if the transplant makes that an extra concern. 

That's all I can think of right now. I hope the information is useful and gives you some ideas of what to talk to your doctor about. I wish you all the luck as you work to improve your health!  Let us know how things go and if you have more questions!

Jen

Thanks!  The overgrowth is in my upper intestine.  Is is a result of my gastroparesis... which I suspect is a result of my transplant.  I know a few other people with transplants that also developed gastroparesis after their transplants.  I think it may have to do with the immunosuppressives I take.  Apparently they could kill off the overgrowth with antibiotics but then it would kill also it in my lower intestine- and I need it there.  They have never brought up a fecal transplant.  

I don't know anyone who had the surgery for these reasons, but RNY should alleviate the acid reflux.   The hiatal hernia is fixed by fixing the hiatal hernia, which can be done during WLS, but you don't need to have WLS to do it.  Since you've had a transplant, I assume you're taking immunosuppressant drugs?  That may connect to the bacterial overgrowth, which is usually treated with medication.  Again, I don't think WLS by itself will help with that.  IBS and gastroparesis, I don't know.

The bacterial overgrowth is from my gastroparesis.  I didn't figure that the surgery would help with the bacterial overgrowth though.  I am mainly hoping that it will help with the acid reflux and the gastroparesis (not to mention the pre-diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol).  I didn't think it would help for the bacterial overgrowth.  I am worried however that it may keep me from getting the surgery. 

Sorry.  Misunderstood your question. 

Here is a link to an old thread about gastroparesis and RNY.

I don't know if bacterial overgrowth will prevent you from having the RNY.  If it's a chronic condition (and it sounds like it is), then it might make it even more difficult to absorb necessary nutrition....but that's just my non-MD thoughts!

Thanks for the link!  I just read it and it seems like there are a lot of conflicting opinions... guess I'll just have to wait and see what they say when I see my GI in 2 weeks.

Wow.  You're really having a tough time of it.  My heart goes out to you.

I actually had a kind of mutated RnY.  What happened was that I had developed so many ulcers over the course of the years that my stomach was on fire all the time.  They were not the type of ulcers that go away with antibiotics. They would partially heal over, then open back up.  The scarring this caused literally closed over my pyloric channel many times.  Hello, hated ENG tube.

It got so bad I begged them to cut out my stomach.  I had also doubled my weight in the previous ten years (my highest was 347lbs) so I asked them to put a lapband on while they were in there.  Fortunately for me, my GI doc knew an awesome bariatric surgeon.  He proposed a near total gastrectomy (to end the ulcers for good).  He would then fashion my tiny remnant stomach into a kind of "pouch" and route my intestines in the standard RnY formation.   A lapband would have probably been the end of me and I will be forever grateful that my surgeon was willing to think outside the box.

I trusted him (and I was completely miserable and desperate), so off we went.  He took my gall bladder out for good measure while he was in there, and believe it or not, he was able to do it all laproscopically - even removing that huge yucky stomach. 

I just had my pouch checked (for other reasons) and at 5+ years I still have a 5cc pouch. I was afraid I had stretched it because I'd had some 40+ lbs of regain (I've since re-lost my regain and am back within 10lbs of my lowest weight.) but nope. My surgeon, who is not my bariatric surgeon, said it was in perfect shape and was a textbook example of what that type of surgery should look like. No stretched stoma either. 

If it were me, I'd go for the surgery, balls out and as fast as you can.   I believe I am alive today solely because of mine.  There have been other health problems so it's not been a continual picnic.  But I am a functional human being again and believe me that was not how I'd describe myself before December 9, 2008.

Best of luck to  you in your journey.

Thank you.  I have to be honest, I am really scared to have them remove my stomach.  I know that the surgery is just one step away from actually removing it, but I can't help it, it scares me.  

Thank you for your encouragement to just go for it.  I think your right.  If I don't do this now, I don't know how long before my health is completely gone.  Fortunately I happen to be the sort of person that once I make up my mind, I tend to go after it with a vengeance.  I really only decided this past weekend.  I have already scheduled an appointment with my GI for two weeks from now.  I have contacted the bariatric surgery center as well and have my information session scheduled for November (they were booked up until then).  I am also on their waiting list if an appointment opens up sooner.

Getting the hiatal hernia repaired very well might cure your GERD. Of course, the RNY is the go-to surgery for treating GERD, but there's no guarantee it will cure yours.

Pre-op, I had terrible GERD. Most nights I slept sitting up, it was so bad. I chose the DS, so I have a Sleeved stomach, but back when I had surgery 10+ years ago, most surgeons were giving DSers generously-sized Sleeves. I think that the tiny Sleeves most are making these days are the reason we soo many more people developing GERD after surgery. My 3-4 ounce Sleeve completely cured my GERD.

What, if anything, have you done to treat your bacterial overgrowth? Do you take probiotics? I know that a lot of WLS patients take them every day.

I know of several people who say their WLS has greatly improved their IBS, but there are also some who said it's made it worse. Again, no guarantees.

Good luck!