Revised DS to have a longer common channel

I am 3 years post DS and I had a revision last Tuesday with Dr. Pomp.
I'm hoping to resolve chronic diarrhea, foul gas, non healing anal fissures, severe anemia, and vitamin deficiencies.  I had tried flagyl, vanco, other antibiotics, probiotics, devrom, pancreatic enzymes, and I restrict my diet to a modified Specific Carbohydrate Diet (I have only been eating meat, nuts, nut flour, small amounts of honey, sweet and low, splenda, unsweetened soy or almond milk, and egg protein powder) for over 1 year.  There was nothing left to try.

In my case the standard advice of eat less carbs, cut dairy, and tinker with your vitamins after each blood test did not resolve my issues; on the contrary, as time went on they continued to get worse.  Perfect compliance does not guarantee a safe outcome with any weight loss surgery including the DS.

The Revision surgery itself:
I remain resistant or allergic to all narcotics so pain management was difficult.  It was supposed to be a 3 day stay, but it ended up being 6 days because it has taken a very long time for the newly reattached portion of old bowel to wake up and start passing food.  I also needed an iron infusion again because my hemoglobin dropped very low again while I was in the hospital.

Right now I can eat very little and my intestines hurt and cramp a lot when I eat.  I have been through an open DS and a LBL and breast lift and this is by far the most painful thing I have dealt with.  It equals the pain from my fissure when my fissure is hurting at its worst.  Thankfully this is likely to be temporary while my intestines remember how to process food.    I am tired.

Dr. Pomp was amazingly accomodating, fitting me into a consult within one month from Gio's referral to him, and then squeezing me into surgery 2 weeks later so I can start work in two weeks.  I cannot say enough good things about him.

I do not usually go on OH much anymore, but I will check in to update my profile sometimes, so I can respond to questions about DS reversal, and my experience going forward.

I am posting this because I want those researching the DS to know that a result like mine is possible.  In retrospect I certainly should not have had the DS and a VSG would have been a much more appropriate option for me.  I know that my results are not typical and I am not condemning the DS, I just think pre-ops should hear all possible outcomes before making an informed decision.  I do not claim my issues are "common," however, in talking about them at support groups and with the many surgeons I have consulted with in my effort to overcome them, it seems that they are less unusual than one would imagine reading this messageboard.  It may be that because message boards are for support and encouragement, those who experience less than the fantastic "come to the dark side, we have cookies" result, feel less of a desire to post.  Honestly, I don't know why it isn't discussed more often. 

In any case, I think that pre-ops should know, and anyone else suffering from chronic bacterial overgrowth, chronic diarrhea, awful smelling gas, unresolving vitamin deficiencies, or fissures, should know that there are other people experiencing this and I for one am happy to speak to you.  Do not lose hope.  It is very hard to avoid depression in this situation, but please do not stop advocating for yourself until you get an answer.

I am sorry to hear that you went through this.

I sincerely hope that your revision resolves your issues.

It was nice to see the other side of the DS experience because I am only always seeing the positive.

I just hate that it is at your expense.

Thank you for sharing.

I wish you a speedy recovery.

Wow!  Thank you sooooo much for your honest post and best wishes to you for a perfect recovery free of pain!

You represent what I feared would happen to me before I started living gluten free (a reversal).  My grocery and menu list is very short as well but not nearly as limited as what you've had to deal with.  I can't veer off the list much at all or EVERYONE pays!  Definitely no cookies for me!...darkside or not!

Are you on the [email protected] website?  I've found a lot of good information there.......I suspect you could teach the lessons they have to share; simply from having experienced the full pkg.!

Good luck and please keep us posted. 

i am a preop, and have only heard the great side of DS, and have heard the good and bad of RNY.

I want to learn both sides of DS....


how can i join or access that yahoo group?

many thanks!

You said:
"i am a preop, and have only heard the great side of DS, and have heard the good and bad of RNY.

I want to learn both sides of DS....


how can i join or access that yahoo group?

many thanks!"

Below is a cut and paste from the groups moderator/owner.  Plz note that pre-ops are welcome as lurkers only and also note that he accurately reminds all of us that the problems addressed on that site are limited to a small percentage of post DS'ers.  .....  There is much to learn though from those who have walked before us and have found solutions and fixes to possible complications as an ERny post-op or a DS post-op. .....  You can join the group by going to www.yahoogroups.com  and following the easy FREE instructions on setting up your profile.  Then in the search window type:  [email protected]  

*******************************************************
"Welcome to the many of you who have subscribed to this list recently. As you know, all interested parties are welcome to join, but only post-op's may post. Recently, we seem to have been about equally divided, as far as new members are concerned, between post-op DS's and WLS-wannabes (prospective WLS -- weight loss surgery -- candidates) who are checking out the downside of the DS. Case in point from a recent comment that is pretty typical:
        I'm about to have a DS and want to learn all there is to know       about any post op problems so I'm well prepared.
  That's fine, and all such folks are more than welcome. But, I hope that you all will understand that very few, by percentages, of DS post-ops have really serious DS-related problems on a permanent basis. As bad as some of the problems that you will read about, like losing too much weight or diarrhea or anal fissures, may seem, in the vast majority of cases all are resolved with time and proper treatment. And, that's what we do here: share from our own experiences with those who now experience similar issues to help them in seeking out the proper treatment from health care professionals or in figuring out what they can do for themselves. 
  I don't think that the stuff you read here will scare any of you away from having WLS, but everybody going into WLS has to be aware that there are risks, perhaps in addition to the ones that your surgeons are obliged to tell you about. "
Be Pro-Active for your body; YOUR life!  Research!  Be Aggressive with Surgeons!  Weigh the good and bad possibilities.  Enjoy your journey!!

Lynn,
I've been thinking about your post and you all night!  ... Kind of pondering your remarks:

"It may be that because message boards are for support and encouragement, those who experience less than the fantastic "come to the dark side, we have cookies" result, feel less of a desire to post.  Honestly, I don't know why it isn't discussed more often. "
 
I asked myself why I haven't felt like I could be more forthright on these support forums.  My personal feelings:

1.  Fear of being judged by others and flamed. (old insecure FAT brain thinking)
2.  Embarrassment over the "possibility" of having made a bad decision for myself.
3.  Worrying that the sharing of my experience will discourage others from making the same choice; which may in fact be perfect for them!
4.  Worrying that considering a reversal would bring even more shame and lead me back to the "F" word and awful co-morbidities.

My list could continue but......

I appreciate your willingness to share your story.  I'm so sorry you've had this hand dealt to you but yet I can't help but be excited in the truths that have been opened up for discussion. 

Of course the same people that promote the cookies and dark side and such will want to ask you if you did everything possible to remedy the complications?  It sounds like you did.......and surgery would be/ should be everyone's last resort, right? 

Anyway.....  THANKS!  Good luck!  Keep us posted!!!

Thanks Joyce.  I really appreciate your thoughtful post.

I feared speaking up because in the past people judged me, saying things like, "that is what you get when you choose to butcher your intestines so you can eat like a pig an not digest it." 

Not all feedback has been bad though.  More people than I can count gave me suggestions, which, although ultimately unsuccessful, were much appreciated and helped me have a slightly better quality of life during this ordeal. 

It is also hard to read every day about how successful and easy and wonderful many other people feel after WLS.  It is tough to do that when you are in pain from the same surgery.

I am a member of the group I think, but I have not posted recently.  When I get around to it, I should.  

Joyce, feel free to PM me and we can chat by instant message anytime.


To be clear to all pre-ops: the DS is a very effective surgery that is appropriate for many people.  I tended toward diarrhea and undiagnosed IBS pre-surgery, so it was probably not the best choice for me.  However, there was no way to know that I as a healthy 21 year old with a perfectly performed DS surgery would develop all the problems I later faced.  Many people who choose RNY or the band also face serious problems and may not have the same benefits as those who choose DS.  Surgery is life altering.  You should discuss the risk of complications with your doctor and develop a plan for dealing with them and make sure you are comfortable having him or her perform a revision on you if necessary (knowing that in all likelihood it will not be necessary).

May I ask what length your common channel was before revision? I actually have heard of another with problems like yours that had her common channel made longer as well. Her channel was 75 prior to revision, 150 after, and I personally think they should not be under 100 to avoid problems. I know there was more variance a few years ago with things like common channel length, and hope stories like yours help surgeons as well.

I'm sorry you've been through so much, and are still not feeling up to snuff. It sounds like the revision recovery is as hard as the initial surgery recovery. I hope you turn the corner soon, and feel better.

Bearmom - I don't have the numbers available right now because I am still very out of it and on medication.  I think I might have gone 75 cm to 150 cm also, but I don't know right now.  If your friend could contact me I would love to speak to her and find out about what her experience post revision has been like.

Thanks for the good wishes.

I have heard nothing but good things about Dr. Pomp.  I'm so glad he could help you.

It's so important for you to post your experience... on the DS forums too... because although rare, it is a reality.   I have seen more problems with those with CCs <100 cms... for me, I was always thinking about a CC of 150 cms.  

I had a Sleeve, and was one of those who was not a success.  I lost weight for 4 months and then nothing else.  34F sleeve.... great doc..... yet that was it.  I get flamed often when I post my response, because honestly people don't want to hear about the bad.  It's frustrating... but I still try and post occasionally.

Now I've been told that since two-part DSers don't lose as  well, a 150 cms CC would not work for me, and I'd have to go shorter.  I'm still not willing to go below 100cms... and would probably push for 125 cms... even if it meant less weight loss.  It's tough.  It would have been nice to have a magic 8 ball and known what would happen... but of course, nobody does.

Happy healing. :)