Considering going to Mexico for abdomiplasty but concerned about follow ups......

I want abdomiplasty after 70lb weight loss.  Prices in Canada are a lot with no coverage at all!  My family doctor understands why I am looking at travelling to Mexico to save money but she said that should there be any complications or revisions required post op, I would probably need to travel back to Mexico.  Llocal surgeons will not want to touch me, because they don't know exactly what and how it was performed. 

In this case! I really won't be saving money!! 

Does anyone have any experience with this that they can share. 

Thanks. :)

We've had several Canadians go to Dr Sauceda.  You can click on Dr Sauceda in my siggy line and it'll take you over to his group here on OH. 

I went to Mexico and had a BL,AL, LBL, TL with Dr. Sauceda. I do not hesitate to recommend him. I had a friend I recommended to go as well and she is pleased with her results too. I lost over a hundred pounds and I am about 18 months out from having the plastics done. I consulted with my family doctor before I went because I would need to have my stitches removed by them, it was not a problem. Unremarkable recovery and I am very glad I did it. Message me if you have any questions.

I went to Tijuana for my lower body lift, with Dr. Victor. Gutierrez.  It was wonderful he did a incredible job all of his stitches are internal so no worries about having to find a local doctor to remove them. I flew into San Diegio where I was picked up and driven the 20 minutes to the clinic.  They arraigned all my aftercare it was very easy. Check out my pictures on my profile that show the wonderful incision lines and fine scaring.

Also if you are concerned about your healing and aftercare you could look into what I did for aftercare, it was sorta my insurance policy that nothing went wrong....what I did was sign up for 6 sessions at a local hyperbolic center and did the oxygen treatments. Many local plastic surgeons send their patients there as it speeds up healing kills any infections and lessons the scaring. I had no issues whatsoever and all my incisions were closed by 2 weeks....you can do a internet search to find a center in your local area....

I'd be curious as to whether there are any actual research documents to back up the claim that hyperbolic centres speed healing.

I saw that because I'm two weeks post op and I have had no issues whatsoever and my incisions are healed up. All I did was follow my surgeon's recommendations.

Of course there is research done on hyperbolic treatments, just Google it and read up....

That's "hyperbaric" treatment, and no there is no evidence to suggest this would improve routine healing in this context

I continue to caution patients about going out of the country for procedures.  I a re-pasting some of my comments from previous posts.

I am not, like you are, disparaging anyone or any place. I am just cautioning patients to think before they act to try and save a little money. Sub-optimal results can occur with anyone and anywhere and a lot depends not only on the surgeon and facility but also on the patient. I have the privilege of consulting and operating in many parts of the US and overseas and I see personally, the different standards, facilities, techniques and results. They vary widely and the US still has the most rigorous accreditation standards for hospitals and facilities. Also, all plastic or cosmetic surgery boards either here in US and overseas are not the same!

If a plastic surgeon is certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, the only board that is recognized by the American Board of Medical Specialties, then you can be assured that he or she has successfully completed a general surgery residency of 3-5 years followed by a plastic surgery residency of 2-3 years in accredited hospitals(a little over 100 of these programs exist in US). During these training years supervised by peers during which they are not operating independently but under strict supervision but actually doing the surgery also( not just observing in overseas programs), they then are required to take a written examination with a significant failure rate and then sometime later if they pass, then have to present a number of their own cases on various aspects of plastic surgery and have these examined and submit to oral examination. A significant amount of surgeons also fail this. After this vigorous regimen, the plastic surgeon becomes certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery(under 10,000 plastic surgeons are so certified). 

This training and certification is very different in almost every country outside the US. Medical Doctors overseas and here in US self-designate themselves as plastic surgeons and this in legal and it is up to the patient to determine whether the physician or facility, hospital is qualified.

One can get an excellent or poor result in the US and overseas but, as again I said, the chances are greater to get a better outcome in the US with a plastic surgeon certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Especially when ones health and safety is at risk, it should be justify spending 10 or 20% more.

I hope that in the near future, insurance companies here in the US will look upon face and body contouring after massive weight loss as a covered expense and I, as President of the American Society of Bariatric Plastic Surgeons am lobbying hard to accomplish this!

Dr. Edward Jonas Domanskis is Certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery

12709 Miramar Parkway

Miramar,Florida 33027

954.367-7984/367-7986(FAX)

1441 Avocado Avenue, Suite 307

Newport Beach, California 92660

949.640-6324/640-7347(FAX)

Website: http://www.surgery-plastic.com

Assistant Clinical Professor of SurgeryWOS-Plastic,University of California (Irvine)

Orange County’s Physician of Excellence/America’s Top Physicians/Top Doctors

Plastic Surgery- 2005/2006/2007/2008/2009/2012/2013

President,American Society of Bariatric Plastic Surgeons www.ASBPS.org

Non-Toxic, No Nanos Skin Care- www.ORGANODERM.com

Scar Therapy- www.ScaRxtape.com

Thank you Dr Domanskis for your honesty and for all the useful information... However I am in Canada amd not the US, some for me the same problem would apply for having my procedure in the states. 

As a Canadian, I could still require follow up care in US and I would have to travel back there to see a surgeon. what I need is information pertaining to having the procedure done in Canada.

I have to say, I find it discouraging that neither Canadian or American Health Plans will cover these procedures for patients who have had significant weight loss. it is not just for cosmetic reasons, but also psychological ones, as is sexual relocation surgery. Please do not misunderstand me, I think it's awful to be born into the wrong body and I am pleased these individuals have help for this through healthcare (at least in Canada they do) but why not for weight loss patients who have saved the healthcare system by eliminating obesity related illnesses.  Why do we provide healthcare for smokers *****fuse to participate in treatment to quit smoking and then develop lung cancer?  Why is there no accountability for illnesses which are self induced? Do not get me wrong, an addiction is an illness too but there should be some responsibility on each individual to at least try... There are proven methods put there to make everyone more healthy and for those who don't even want to try, they should be responsible for whatever happens to them!! 

I hope one day that someone really examines this amd considers changing the policy.  I also think that individuals who have bariatric surgery which is paid for by the government, and then put the weight back on because they do not pay attention to what they are eating (let's face it, you don't become over weight from not eating too much) should some way be accountable for this and should be required to pay something back. That money could then be used to help others who have lost the weight, kept it off without any cost to health care.  

I have overcome an eating disorder and lost the weight following a strict low carb, low sodium and low fat diet and kept most of it off for 3 years!  It was a lot of hard work. I put on 30lbs because I was pregnant and then had a miscarriage. I struggled with emotional eating after that but managed to keep it somewhat under control and got myself back on the healthy track. Where is the reward for someone like me who did it on their own? Seems to me that the health care system is a bit skewed in the wrong direction when it comes to providing patients like myself with assistance. Instead of helping with excess skin that causes chafing, and the emotional affects of now having a thin but disfigured body, I am left with, politicians in Canada would rather give free sexual relocation surgery to a patient who is jail(yes this really happened)!

Ok that's my vent! I realize I am getting off topic! I think cosmetic surgeons should work with the health care system and at least agree to make these operations more affordable to those who have done the hard work!!  Anyone who has lost a lot of weight should qualify for some reconstruction to their bodies. They could save on treating us for psychological disorders for having a deformed but thin body!  

Why don't cosmetic surgeons do pro bono work??  In Canada, a panni is covered by healthcare under certain cir****tances, but surgeons are only paid $450 for the procedure so they tend not to approve them in favour of a tummy tuck for $10k!!  How is that fair or moral??

This is what leads us to travelling to Mexico or DR or Cuba to have these procedures done under less than perfect conditions, which result in medical complications when we get home and are unable to find anyone to help us because our surgery was performed abroad. 

Comments? Thoughts? Suggestions?