Yeah, I agree with you about people not wanting to associate with those having a surgery different than their own... Sometimes they feel out of place talking with other type surgical patients as their whole experience (recovery/food/medical needs) differs greatly. Ya know... we were all in the same boat before surgery, struggling with morbid obesity and the sociological, psychological and physical aspects. About the # of BM's... In the DS, there seems to be a correlation between a shorter common channel, the frequency of BMs and the excess weight loss (ewl) achieved. I initially rejected the DS as a surgical choice for myself, until I found out that one of the most experienced DS surgeons (Anthone) had started making the common channel longer and the stomach smaller, eliminating side effects that plagued earlier patients. Medicine constantly evolves and is studied carefully in order to phase out outdated procedures and replace them with something that is better. OH is a good thing and I hope more people like yourself appreciate the community as a whole...it's a good thing to have a large circle of support from others who have really "walked a mile in our shoes". Take care, Laurie (who doesn't care what kind of surgery a person has had...as long as it helps them achieve the dreams they only hoped for in their pre-op life.

Hi Paula, I agree that the type of surgery is an individual choice, but it goes much further. Individual surgeons will tweak the surgeries even further. Some want to be able to publish studies showing their patients have a higher rate of ewl. So... they use a shorter intestine, leading to more frequent BMs. Dr. Anthone (and other DS surgeons) are much more conservative than others who are performing the DS, so its possible that is why my experience may be different than your friends. From the postings on several message boards I read, with some surgeons, there seems to be a pattern...their patients experience more weight loss, but with higher # of BMs. But when it's this bad... it could very well be an intestinal bug causing symptoms... That is why I urged your friends who are suffering to call their surgeons...Although some DS patients do have more frequent BM's, what you are describing is NOT normal and sometimes a simple bottle of Flagyl is all it takes to do the trick. Often patients are reluctant to contact their surgeons...that is what they are there for...follow up care. Take care and I hope your DS friends get relief...they do NOT have to suffer like this. (((Hugs))) Laurie

Hi, Sorry you had such a hard time. Every surgery has their possible risks and complications. I am sorry you had to be in that group. I am almost six years out and have had no complications and I guess I am one of the lucky ones. I don't promote any specific surgery. I just ask the potential wls patient to research all the options and pick the one they feel they could live with and trust. I think that is the best advice I give. huuugzzzz Paula

Bridget, I am so sorry to hear you are having complications. Have you considered consulting with a Duodenal Switch (DS) surgeon to see if you could be revised to a DS? Because the DS preserves the use of the pyloric valve there is no stoma with the DS, there is no risk of ulcers... This may possibly be the answer you are looking for. You might want to go to www.duodenalswitch.com and look for an experienced DS surgeon in your area. Take care. Laurie in So Calif.

My surgeon was trained by Dr. Rutledge. It is the exact same surgery that they do at clos.net. To make a very long story short, a year and a hal*****hey diagnosed that I had an ulcer. It was not in my pouch, it was near the area where they attached the intestines to the pouch. They treated it for a couple of months and then assumed it was healed. I continued to be in severe pain, but they insisted it was not this ulcer. They told me it was only the size of my pinky fingernail and nothing to worry about. Well in November I was rushed to the ER because the ulcer perforated and started leaking into my abdomen. According to the doctors at Mayo, the ulcer was not properly treated and monitored, and was a direct result of the bypass. In their exact words, "a mini bypass is no good. It is like sewing a piece of steak to a piece of hamburger, it will not hold up." So they are now reffering me to one of their gastro doctors to decide what needs to be done. The surgeon believes I will either have to have my mini converted to a full RNY, or have it broke down and restored as close to normal as possible. I was in the hospital for three weeks due to this, and have been told that if I have to have more surgery, it will be an even longer recovery due to the tissue damage that has been done, and will possibly loose my spleen. I had a feeding tube in for 6 weeks because I could not eat anything by mouth do to trying to get the ulcer to heal. They removed the feeding tube, but I have been told that if I cannot gain weight by my next check up in a month, they will have to look at putting it back in. (I am now underweight, due to all this) I hope this answers your questions, if not please feel free to contact me. Bridget