My EGD showed all kinds of craziness...what does this mean for upcoming VSG?!

Ive had GERD for years. My surgeon recommended the sleeve for me. Right from day 1 had me on prilosec. Said that we will keep an eye and if any issues or complications arise will revise. So far so good. Only 2 weeks post op tho. I guess will see how things go once Im on a normal diet and not pureed. Drinking lots of water, not drinking pop like i did pre surgery is whats really helping my stomach. I also had H pylori prior that was finally delt with that was probably the cause of my GERD. Crossing my fingers all is OK and manageable, but i have a good feeling about it and will be OK.

It astonishes me that surgeons will perform VSG for people who suffer from GERD.

And then say "If it doesn't work out, well just do an entirely new surgery." Yikes.

I hate to be a downer, but 2 weeks out is not NEARLY enough time to judge if things will be OK, or to give advice to the OP.

The strangest thing is that I dont have any symptoms of heartburn. I'm not on any heartburn medication and other than the occasional Tums (like three or four times a year) I would never have guessed I had GERD!

I'm thinking that if I begin taking regular medication for it then maybe VSG will still be a good option for me?

The biggest realization came from the structure the doctor found during the EGD- all my life I've had trouble taking pills, or food getting "stuck" on the way down and can remember my Dad always telling me I was just "eating to fast/much/being careless". Well, today the doctor said I had a large "web stricture" that she cut open for me, and couldn't believe I'd been able to figure out how to eat with it my whole life!

Anyway, I digress. Have spent the day after the EGD recovering with liquid diet (ugh) and researching how this will impact my decision for VSG.

I'm sure my bariatric surgeon will be in touch when he gets the results, I'll be interested to hear what he has to say......

Sadly "silent" GERD is a thing that exists and long-term use of PPIs can have some pretty dire consequences. (And I read a research article just last week that found PPIs didn't actually reduce the chance of developing esophageal cancer - the thing that's the ultimate risk from GERD.)

The only fix action for GERD after VSG, is revision to RNY. So if you're self pay, might as well self pay for the RNY in the first place.

This is correct - I had no symptoms of any kind of intestinal disorder, but at my initial EGD pre-op the doctor found I've had serious GERD for so many years that I already have Barrett's Esophagus. THANKFULLY my surgeon said no way on doing the sleeve and we did RNY, for which I'm very thankful. Even so, I've been diagnosed since with ulcers (h Pylori and the antibiotics plus 2 weeks on PPI took care of that round).

I hope the OP listens to the excellent advice here and takes the best path for her situation, which is not going to be a VSG.

The use of PPIs does not resolve reflux. What they do is mask the symptoms of reflux while acid or bile continue to damage your esophagus and/or stomach. PPIs were not approved for long term use and result in increased risks of a lot of bad medical conditions (google them) when you take them for 1+ years. So people that just plan to use them for that amount of time or indefinitely are making a really poor health decision, imo.

GERD is no joke and can lead to esophageal cancer, which does not have a good survival rate. My aunt died within 4 weeks of being diagnosed; she had silent reflux. I had pre-existing GERD so my bariatric surgeon refused to do a VSG on me, thankfully.

I am in the beginning process of getting weight loss surgery, also self pay. I am waiting for my surgeon to contact me for the scope and I am not sure what the findings are going to be. I honestly don't believe I have GERD but reading these replies makes me really curious what is going to come up. Definitely heed the advice of the people replying to your post, for sure this has made me more cautious about my next steps.