CAN SOMEONE PLEASE PLEASE ANSWER MY POSTS, IS SCLEROTHERAPY WORKING FOR ANYONE? I KNOW SOME PEOPLE HAVE HAD IT DONE FOR A LITTLE WHILE NOW BUT IS IT WORTH IT? AND ANYONE WHO HAD IT DONE 2 TIMES IS THAT MAKING EVEN MORE OF A DIFFERENCE? I WANT TO DO IT BUT SHOULD I. THANKS TO ANYONE WHO TAKES THE TIME TO ANSWER ME.

I had it done 8 days ago and I can tell the restriction. I have lost 5 pounds in 8 days but I have to be on a liquid diet for 2 weeks and soft food diet for 2 weeks. So of course if you are on liquids you are gonna lose, I guess you have to wait and see when you can go back to eating regular foods if it really works longterm. I hope this helps some but this is my progress so far.

Please, if you will, what is this procedure I've heard others talk of it on the forum and I wrote and asked to have the procedure explained but no one posted back. Can you please let me know what this is, who does it, what it's supposed to do, who qualifies, and any other pertinent information about it. Thank You. JRolfson

Sclerotherapy

The gastric bypass pouch works optimally when a small opening keeps food in the pouch for a longer period of time. However, in some patients, with the passage of time, the opening can enlarge slightly. Until recently, there was no procedure available to address this situation. However, a study published in the Obesity Surgery Journal demonstrated that when a procedure known as sclerotherapy (pronounced: sklare-o-therapy) is performed in conjunction with a consultation with a registered dietitian, the best weight loss results are obtained. How Sclerotherapy Works Sclerotherapy is an outpatient procedure available for gastric bypass patients who have a dilated (enlarged) opening in their pouch. The procedure may be helpful in preventing additional surgery and may assist the patient with continued weight loss. It involves injecting an irritant around the opening from the pouch to the intestines. The body then reacts to the irritant by constricting (decreasing) the opening. Who is Helped by Sclerotherapy? This procedure can be very helpful for patients who are 2 – 5 years post surgery and have lost a fair amount of weight, but continue to struggle with the sensation that they can eat more than they could immediately following surgery. The procedure involves having an esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) to evaluate the size of the pouch opening. If the opening is deemed large, then the irritant can be applied to decrease its size. In some cases, it may take more than one application to get the opening to constrict to the desired size.

Does insurance pay for the procedure

My insurance paid for it, I have Mercy.

Most do not.  They view it as experimental.

I'm in Boston, and my RNY surgeon is at Brigham & Women's, so he referred me to Dr. Thompson in Endoscopy/Gastroenterology group.  Their insurance folks told me that this procedure is billed as just that - a procedure - and most insurances will allow up to 3 of them to be performed and fully paid for.  Dr. Thompson told me that usually 2 procedures is all you'll need, but sometimes a 3rd is needed, depending on how much the outlet from your pouch has stretched.  I have my first sclerotherapy on April 20th.  I'll let you know how it goes.  I'm very frustrated now because I have put on 41 pounds since reaching my lowest weight, and I'm hungry all the time and try to control it, but the weight is just creeping back on. 

I have never heard of this procedure....is it widely done and how would one find a physcian to do it?

I don't know how you would find a surgeon that does it. My surgeon that I had for WLS just rdid it when I had an endoscopy done since my stoma was too big.