Lupus and verticle sleeve

Lupus and verticle sleeve surgery is it safe enough.Also did anybody get one and doing fine.

Vertical Sleeve is probably the safest for a lupus patient.  There is no problem with malabsorption of meds and you can continue to take both NSAIDS and prednisone.  With the RNY, both are out of the question (though my surgeon said for a very short term need, both would be okay with a proton-pump inhibitor).

There are lots of people on these boards with lupus/autoimmune disease.  You may want to hit the main board or the vertical sleeve forum.

-Elli

Thanks  for the info. I was not sure if  the sleeve would be o.k. I am looking into having surgery done in Mexico due to the surgeons here in my hometown of california refused me because of lupus. I was pretty limited on surgeons because of my HMO insurance. Also what is a proton-pump inhibitor.

I would be very leary going to Mexico to have the surgery with lupus.  I had thought about doing that myself.  Then again, my autoimmune stuff is pretty stable.  I would not go to Mexico unless your rheumatologist and PCP are both aware and supportive.

I don't understand why a surgeon in the states wouldn't do your surgery, unless your lupus isn't stable.  I met with a new surgeon just before Turkey day (having to change from the one I initially established with due to insurance).  One of the first questions he asked me was "is my lupus stable?"  He had no problem doing the surgery.  It helps that my rheumatologist is in the building next door and works from the same hospital I will have my surgery at.  Maybe your local surgeons need a little education from your rheumatologist?

A proton-pump inhibitor reduces gastric acid production...Prilosec, Prevacid, Aciphex, Protonix...

Hope I've helped,
Elli

Thank you for your quick response.  I will talk to my rheumatologist  about  it and why surgeons are cautious about the lupus . My lupus is considered mild and never had a flare up yet. I do have more problems with fibromyalgia which I was diagnosed with the lupus. So I don't think there should be a problem with having the surgery it's just the surgeons here. But I will speak with my doctor first and thank you for the info. on the proton-pump.

Hi I had VSG on Sept 2nd and am doing great. When I first went to my surgeon he was leary but didn't say that,I was actually going for the lapband. My Rhuemy said she didn't think that was very good thing as it was a foreign object. So that made me read alot on here and talk to many of you and then asked him to do a VSG. Then he said the ins wouldn't cover it but I had a lot of criteria and they did. I went in on the 2nd at 6am was only to spend 1 night but my surgeon thought it best to stay one more night. I was let go on Friday morning. I did run fevers and had my drain in alittle long. I saw him everyweek, I did go back in the hospital week later. I was running a fever and blood (white) was high. I am on pred and have been for 30 yrs now so that is why all of this. While I was in the hospital 2nd time he ran all those tests all over thinking I may have a leak. He was with me at every test and back and forth to my room when he would. He took very good care of me. I was on diabetic meds, bp meds,and choles. trigl. were high and on thier meds. Also I have had fatty liver and elevated liver levels and now everything is gone, no meds except for my lupus, and my liver enzymes are NORMAL!!!! My Rhuemy when I saw her last month got my blood work back and she was amazed. She admitted she never thought that this surgery would work like this. If I were you I would check out local surgeons around here in the US before going out of Country. That to me would be very scary and my cause you to flare. You don't want that. Good lck to you and hope to talk to you soon. Happy Nw Year, Le

What is a pronton pump?

Keep trying, Cakes!

There were surgeons *****fused me, too.  But I kept trying until I found one who was comfortable with performing the surgery.

I am on disability because of the SLE/Fibro combo.  For many surgeons, the question is: do the benefits outweigh the risks?

Prednisone helped get me to 387 pre-op.  Immediately post-op, I was 405.

Today, when I weighed for my surgiversary, I weighed 292.8 lbs.  I have not been below 300 lbs. in more than a decade!

The weight loss has helped my joint pain, especially my knees and ankles, though I must admit, Voltaren Gel has had a hand in my pain relief, too!

I am hoping that my weight loss will propel me back into the workforce up to my retirement age!

Hi I also have Fibro and SLE and am considering weight loss surgery.  can't decide which one...sleeve, rny or band.  what helped you make your decision.  I'd appreciate any info or advice you have.  thanks

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Tammy-

The Lap-BAnd is contraindicated for people with autoimmune disorders, such as SLE and Fibro.

My lifelong battle with obesity, and more recently, malignant morbid obesity (aka super-super morbid obesity) due to treatment with prednisone, led me to choose the Duodenal Switch.

The RNY numbers on weight regain were not good enough fo me (plus, everyone that I knew who had a RNY gained all their weight back), and I didn't like the anatomical changes the surgery caused, specifically creating a "food pouch" instead of simply reducing the stomach.  That's what the Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy(VSG) does, and the VSG is also the "top half" of the duodenal switch (DS).  I knew right out of the gate that I wanted a duodenal switch.  You are left with a smaller, fuly functioning stomach, which gives you a wider variety of diet than the RNY, plus, the malabsorptive "switch" portion, keeps the weight off. However, you have to be absolutely compliant, everyday about getting in your required hydration, protein, vitamins and supplements.  I have not had to adjust my SLE/Fibro medications up because of my surgery.  The recommended doses work fine.

As for nutrition, here's the breakdown of absorption:  Fats: 18-20% (high cholesterol goes away or never develops, bye-bye fatty liver, etc..all while eating full fat, full flavor foods!)                  Protein 40-50% ( this is why you MUST be complaiant and get 90-100 g of protein EVERY day!) Complex carbs (fruits and veggies) 40-50% Simple carbs (sugar and white flour) 100% During the losing phase (first year to 18 months) you MUST limit ALL carbs to no more than 50 g daily.

Weigh (no pun intended!) your options carefully...think twice, cut once.

Hang out ("lurk") on OH's Duodenal Switch forum, and for more in-depth knowledge, www.dsfacts.com, and www.duodenalswitch.com.  Also, just do an Internet search of "duodenal switch" and see what else you come up with.

Good luck to you as you make your WLS decision.