Question:
I had lap ryn on Dec 19th at Kaiser San Fransico, I just had my 5 month check up

which by the way is only the second time I have seen the doctor since surgey the first was at two weeks. He did not order any blood work up when I asked him about it he said well if your feeling good and eatien ok I don't see any reason do to blood work. I am feeling good most of the time but do get tiered real easy and I am loosing hair by the hand fulls. Does this seem right?    — kathy B. (posted on April 28, 2003)

April 28, 2003
I would be a little concerned. To give you an idea of what other doctors are doing...I seen my doctor/surgeon at 2-weeks, now I have another one in 4-weeks. Before my 4-week appt, I have a complete blood work appt. so that when I see him in 4-weeks, he will have the results. Losing your hair I believe is from lack of protein. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.
   — Kim L.

April 28, 2003
You need to get as much protein in your system as possible. When I had surgery over a year a go, the doctor instructed all of his patients to get at least 50 grams of protein a day. I would make smoothies out of yogurt, high protein milk and use soy protein and sip on it for most of the day until the entire contents was comsumed. Eat Meats and any type of food with high protein. I never lost any hair as a matter of fact my hair is very healthy and has grown quit a bit. Without enough protein your eyes will also appear to be black and you will have bags.
   — Terry H.

April 28, 2003
You need to get as much protein in your system as possible. When I had surgery over a year a go, the doctor instructed all of his patients to get at least 50 grams of protein a day. I would make smoothies out of yogurt, high protein milk and use soy protein and sip on it for most of the day until the entire contents was comsumed. I also went to Smoothie King and got high protein smoothies and asked them to add an extra scoop of protein. Eat Meats and any type of food with high protein. I never lost any hair as a matter of fact my hair is very healthy and has grown quit a bit. Without enough protein your eyes will also appear to be black and you will have bags.
   — Terry H.

April 28, 2003
I had my surgery 4/3/03. I've seen my doctor twice so far. One week after then 3 wks later. I will see him again in a month. I will have blood work done every 4 months til I reach goal. Then I will see the doctor once a year. I like the fact very much that my doctor has a thorough aftercare program. As for the losing of hair, that's a good guess. If you search the library for hair loss, many people of tried many other things, some work, some don't. Extra protien couldn't hurt, but I don't believe it's a garantee for no hair loss. Good luck.
   — TLLessor

April 28, 2003
This concerns me a bit. My surgeon sees his post-op patients 2 weeks after, then 4 weeks, then 3 months, then 6 months, then twice a year pretty much for life. And you are supposed to get blood work every 6 months. Just because you FEEL okay, doesn't mean that you aren't lacking in certain vitamins or have other things. As post-ops, it's essential to get our blood checked and make sure we do not have defiencies, espeically if you are tired- that can be a sign. But you may just still be adjusting to your new body. I would call your surgeon and make sure he orders tests, otherwise call your PCP and have him do it. <p> As for the hair falling out, this is pretty normal unfortunately. Like the previous poster said, make sure you're getting enough protein, but even that may not help. I had 80grams a day and still lost my hair, just the luck of the draw! It may take a few weeks or months, but it will eventually stop and then grow back- so don't get too worried. Goodluck to you!
   — Lezlie Y.

April 28, 2003
As a Kaiser patient and a Kaiser employee- you really need to be in charge of your own health- they will NOT do it for you. The staff is just to busy to pay much attention to individuals. Tell the MD you want to have your labs checked, have a CBC, chem panel & lipid profile to begin with. Kaiser is managed care, they make money on the younger healthier patients, so will not offer labs if not needed. You have to be an advocate for yourself- if your PCP will not listen, either go to membership service or change MD's!
   — ~~Stacie~~

April 29, 2003
Hi, Kathy, I had my surgery 3 months ago and my surgeon saw me at 1 week post-op and at 2 weeks post-op, then a month later-and that is when he did some blood work. And, he ordered for me to have more blood work done for when I come and see him in three months, so yes, I would be alittle concerned, because if you are getting tired then you may not be getting in enough protein and vitamins and the blood work checks for that. As for your hair falling out, I luckily haven't had that problem yet, but I heard from other people that not getting enough protein in or if you are loosing weight too fast that can make your hair fall out, but don't worry too much beacuse I heard that it will always grow back. Make sure that you are taking your iron though because that helps with hair growth. Anyway, I would get stern with your surgeon, or talk to your primary care doctor about the blood work. Hope this info helps. Good luck.
   — Melodee S.

April 29, 2003
Yes, I would insist on labs being done. Also, general anesthesia can cause hair loss. I had non-WLS surgery in Oct. 2002 and my hair loss started about a month later and just stopped in February 2003.
   — Leni M.