Question:
any heavy smokers with sleep apnea
i know im gonna get scolded here, but i have to ask...i am a heavy smoker (yes i know i need to guit, i also need to lose weight..it aint easy) I also have severe sleep apnea and can not tolerate the cpap machine. My doctor warns me against wls due to the apnea. I guess my question is have any of you had these same problems and had a sucessful surgery? — justaboutkrazy (posted on February 6, 2005)
February 5, 2005
Yes you can have this surgery with sleep apnea. I belong to another group
and there are many in it that has had the surgery successfully and they
have even been able to get off the machine completely, but only after
another sleep study done. As you may know this is one of the comorbidites
for the surgery. I am on a machine also and I am just waiting for my date
to have the surgery done. And yes my doctor knows about this. So it can
happen. If your doctor doesnt want to do it then I would get a second
opinion...God Bless you on your continued journey...if you need you can
e-mail me at [email protected]
— kandi52
February 5, 2005
Well first QUIT SMOKING, most good surgeons require this today. Smokers
have serious troubles after surgery and die and leak more. If your not
willing to quit then WLS probably isnt for you. sorry.
<P> My bi pap setting was 17 and I didnt tolerate it at all. Had
surgery safe and sound with careful monitoring. Have your surgeon recommend
a pulmonologist, he wouldnt recommend someone who will turn you down...
— bob-haller
February 6, 2005
I'm so glad you are able to verbalize your concerns. I also have sleep
apnea and had difficulty getting used to wearing the mask. My therapist was
afraid that I would not be able to do it. There were many mornings when the
mask was on the floor from me unknowingly removing it during the night. I
kept at it, and slowly, adjusted to wearing it. I LOVE the extra energy I
have as a result of getting good sleep. Perhaps it would be helpful to you
if you could concentrate on the benefit of using the cpap. Sometimes I
think that even small disciplines like this will help me to be successful
in following the rules of the pouch.
I am more concerned about your smoking. Frankly, I don't know of any
surgeon who will perform wls on someone who hasn't stopped smoking for at
least 3 months because it so strongly interferes with healing.
Above all, what your doctor advises is crucial to follow. Second opinions,
etc., are ok, but if your trusted doctor is advising against the surgery,
listen. You stated that he is against wls for you because of the apnea.
Does smoking play a role in making your apnea worse? (I don't know, just
asking.)
I'm having surgery in a couple of weeks. Apnea hasn't prevented me from
qualifying. But everyone's medical condition is different, and in my
opinion it is vital to follow the advice of your doctor, who has a
comprehensive picture of your overall health - and what you could do that
would possibly make you a viable wls candidate. Best wishes to you - Deb
— dmphilippi
February 6, 2005
I cannot figure out why your doctor would WARN you against WLS with sleep
apnea. The apnea can only get better PO. My husband has sleep apnea and has
improved tremendously from WLS. His apnea has not gone completely away
because he will probably need to have some sort of a surgery on his throat
to reduce some of the excess skin inside but when he naps without his cpap
or does not wear it by accident he hardly snores at all. I would get a
second opinion regarding the sleep apnea and WLS and how it would benefit
you.
— ChristineB
February 6, 2005
Hi Mary, I know it is hard to quit smoking, as I was a asthmatic smoker,
smoking a pack a day up until the weekend before surgery.I went thru months
of wearing the patch, burning the hell out of my skin. The patch left a
mark for at least a week, I am allergic to the glue.
I also had sleep apnea, within the first 30 days after surgery I no longer
needed the CPAP. I lost 43 pounds the first month and when I realized I was
waking up without the mask on feeling rested I knew I was in remission.
Diabetes has become controlled too.
Good Luck on your journey.
— Spy Girl 9.
February 6, 2005
Hello! I was a heavy smoker with sleep apnea too. No scolding for me. Just
like the other lady that posted, within a month of the surgery my sleep
apnea was gone. No more snoring, no more waking up exhausted, no more
listening to hubby say "you wake me up all night". I hear this is
very common, the relief of sleep apnea symptoms once you lose the weight.
Good luck and hang in there!!!
— GloriV
February 8, 2005
I went to your profile and you wrote: "I AM scared to go against my
docs advice..." Why can't you apply those words to your doctor saying
you have to quit smoking??? I'm sure he/she and all the other docs have
said the same thing to you too. Funny how we only listen to the docs orders
about some things.
— SpyderS
April 21, 2006
Contrary to popular belief as far as the WLS there is no medical proof that
quitting smoking is going to help your recovery/surgical complications any
any more than smoking. The main concept is that you HAVE smoked or you
haven't. That is the two categories. Doctors wouldn't be doing their jobs
if they didn't tell you to quit smoking. You do have every day risks that
every one has by smoking ie lung cancer and all that. But the doctors know
that you either want or need this surgery so much that they can put that
stipulation in there and they know that you will do it just to have the
surgery. I personally have an understanding with my doctor that I am going
to quit the day that I have WLS.
— sarnall2
April 21, 2006
Scott, you are either in denial or sorrily mistaken about the surgery risks
of a smoker. longer recvery time, more leaks, more pain from coughing etc.
scott dont you know stopping smoking causes more coughing early on, from
your body trying to clear the lungs. is it a good idea to cough more right
after major surgery? sadly more smokers die, because their bodies are
impaired by the toxins of smoke. most good surgewons today require
quittiung well in advance if surgery and check for cheating the morning of
surgery. Beyond which you will be withdrawing not only from smoking but
food at the same time:( If you dont quit before you run serious risk of
ulcers, that dont respond well to treatment...............................
Now on to the original poster my setting was 21:( Never did tolerate the
thing! My surgeon Dr philip Schauer knew this before my WLS, with oxygen,
life support monitoring, and careful pain control it wasnt a problem. so
you can get WLS, with the right surgeon:) Was it your PCP surgeon, or
pulmonary doc who recommends against WLS because you cant use the cpap?
— bob-haller
April 22, 2006
I forgot the worst danger of smoking after surgery, Smoking makes your
blood sticky, which can lead to blood clots, the biggest killer of post
ops, and other nasties, like strokes. WLS is all about getting healthy,
quitting smoking is part of the big picture. All of this directly from my
surgeon the new president of the ASBS
— bob-haller
April 27, 2006
I am also a heavy smoker. I know from experience that smoking up until the
last minute before surgery puts you at greater risk for complications from
anesthesia. It's not an issue of how fast or easy your recovery is if you
don't quit...it's all about being put to sleep with some very powerful
respiratory depressants. We all know that cigarette smoke irritates the
upper and lower airways, causing inflammation and coughing. The airways
are narrowed by mucous that collects there..a natural body response to
irritants. So we cough. Smokers have constricted airways and are shallow
breathers...Now add anesthetics/paralytics to the picture. These drugs,
which are absolutely necessary for surgery, can cause a smoker's airways to
be even further depressed and possibly cause respiratory arrest. I had
minor surgery on my elbow back in January and while in recovery, after they
removed the endotrachial tube, I coughed for a solid half hour, causing my
oxygen saturations to drop. That meant more time in recovery, a sore
throat and headache from the cough, and a good scolding from staff for
smoking on the way to the hospital that morning. Do yourself a
favor...QUIT. Not the day before or the morning of your surgery...quit at
least 2-3 weeks before so your airways have a chance to heal and clear out.
— KathyGallagher
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