Dr. Howell- vagotomy??

Does anyone know if Dr. Howell still does this? Judi?

Hi I don't know from personal experience, but I have heard him speak at the support group meetings and he has said he does do those.  This was probably the April support group meeting.

Hi Danni: He does still do it but it is optional.  I wavered and wavered and decided to go for it. A woman on Quix who no longer posts had to have a vagotomy after she had a ton of ulcers and she said she wouldn't recommend it. another gal on Quix who is a med student who has had a lot of ulcers wishes she had had it as an option. my dh had it with his rny 1 year ago and hasn't had any problems. arthritis runs in my family so i want the  option of nsaids as i get older. If you don't want it though, just tell him.  He told my dh that if he had (tmi here ) "loose stools" pre-op he probably wouldn't do it. more info than you wanted!       this board is really hopping, 3 of us!!! lol judi

Thanks...I hadn't read any good things about having it done yet so I was glad to hear it was optional.  I will keep researching it to make sure I'm headed down the right road.  I think it was in Dr. Howell's Board comments that I had read one person regretted it.   Since mine is a double procedure with the Nissen having to be undone maybe he'll tell me I have to have it or just the opposite I can't have it?  I just like to go to these things with as much info as possible.   Your dates are getting soooooo close....woohoo!! Thanks again

hi danni: i copied one of my responses from quix about this:

the woman *****plied goes by Quinn's Mom here but she is due to have a baby anytime so i doubt if she is posting much:

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As someone who dealt with ulcers postop (NOT related to my WLS) I opted to have a surgical procedure ...a truncal vagotomy..total severing of the vagus nerve. I've had no side effects except for some slow motility issues (slow emptying of the pouch) but took reglan (when not pregnant) and noticed that walking after I ate helped it to move along so to speak..it basically gives you some form or degree og Gastroparesis.. I never lost taste or smell or well anything with it... Always make sure you do your research before doing anything..My advice as someone who has had this procedure..talk to a gastroenterologist ..THEY will give you the best information as far as the vagotomy and then decide if it's something you want done....especially since every person has a different outcome with every procedure Good luck! Also, i guess that Charlie who is back and posting a lot on the main board had a vagotomy with her wls 5 years ago and she really seems to know her stuff. i bet if you pm'd her she'd answer. 

just think, you will finally have a date, and i will finally have surgery next week, yay! i hope doc howell had a very soothing trip! judi

Thanks for the post.  I'm a pretty "regular" girl, if you know what I mean..lol  I do sometimes have loose bm's -tmi- so I'm really thinking a big NO on this.  I've had the reflux surgery, gallbladder removed, I've had gastroenteritis so I really don't want to mess with any extra tummy issues.  From what I've read I think I would be better off not having it.  I'm glad you now have a choice because not too long ago I don't think there was a choice.  I'm getting soooo excited for us.  Dr. Howell will be all rested up and rarin to go when he gets back!!  What did you have to do after your consult?  I'm guessing I will do my consult with Dr. Howell on Thursday and then theres a preop in there somewhere - is there anything else?  Thanks again Danni

hi danni: howell might make you sit thru his class again even if you already did it with monson. if your appt on thursday starts at 8 am, it'll be a sales pitch from the labs research people wanting you to be in their study, about an hour of doc howell describing what he does, about an hour of the nutrionist. then later in the day (and maybe this is all you have to do) a one on one with doc howell.  after my insurance was approved i had another one on one with howell, signed the paper authorizing him to do 3 things: 1. rny, 2 gallbladder, 3 vagotomy and his nurse gave me the instructions for the couple of days before surgery. warning: if you are squeamish about giving blood do NOT do the labs thing. most of it is questionnaire but they seriously took 14 large test tubes of blood out of me.  so, you might be skipping some of these steps since you started with monson. i hope they give you a date on thursday, im looking forward to having the summer to exercise. pm charlie if you don't get any responses on the main board, she is very very nice and helpful! judi

I read your post before I looked at the main board and I was like what does she mean if I don't get answers from the main board...lmao  um, because not one person has answered my post...too funny, I spose people get tired of the same ol questions but that never stops me from asking them...hahahaa  My appt is at 8:30am, I think they did mention sitting through some kind of session and then its  back at 2:30 to see Dr. Howell.  My insurance is already approved so hopefully I just have to meet with Dr. Howell once.  What are your thoughts about the research, I'm guessing your doing it since they drew blood?  Is it something you have to do often?  I used to donate plasma so I guess blood doesn't bother me.  What do you have to do special before your surgery?  We don't have to drink anything right?  Also when did you have your pre-op?  Your so close now, I'm super psyched for you!!  Thanks for being so nice...I'll be keeping you in my prayers.

 

Ps  I went to Walmart the other day and picked up my "tongs" for after the surgery...I laughed when I read we would need that, then I stopped laughing and now I have my own pair...lol

hi danni: sounds like you are ready! my big preop thing to do today was get a pedicure lol. i tried to ask about the vagotomy on the main board once too. noone knew anything, a couple of people googled it and tried to be nice.  red haired jane who doesn't post here much anymore is the med student who answered me at quix along with the other post i gave you. here was her reply: Judi, don't pay for the article. I went and did a lookup in the various medical dictionaries and journals I have laying around. This procedure with GB is actually becoming more popular and in some cases docs do it and don't even tell the patients. I read that it is more common with a gastrectomy, so yes people who get VSG may already be walking around with their vagus nerve permanently cut. It does preven acid from coming up into the stomach and can prevent ulcers. I don't think it is a bad thing. I kinda wish I had one with all the ulcer problems I've had. The good thing is, you may be able to continue taking NSAIDS after surgery which can be a blessing! (googling around i had found an article about vagotomies and wls but it cost $47 and i didn't want to pay it!) jane also mentioned in another post to me that it could affect taste and smell, it hasn't affected my husband. Also, if you look at my friends list, Sue is on there. she also had dr howell and is over 1 year out. the thing about the vagotomy is you could always have it done later like mariella did if you had major ulcer problems. it is non-reversible. so, even tho i am doing it, since you have other issues you may not want to. dr howell seems like a straight shooter i'd talk to him about it during your one on one. the labs study is a LOT of questionnaires. i think they do them at 6 mos 12 mos and 18 mos and walking 1/4 mile. not a big deal but i was in a hurry the day they drew my blood and i had to wait because they ran out of vials they needed so many!  i think they'll probably draw it again at 12 mos. i figure it is one more incentive to keep me on track if they are using this study to determine who in the future should be approved. i bet you'll get scheduled on thursday since your insurance has already signed off, it should happen pretty quickly for you! good luck, let me know how it went, i should be home next saturday.  judi