Question:
Which is more painful?
My friend says that since the lap incisions go through muscle tissue & the open procedure goes in between, the lap method is more painful. I don't agree based on my research. Is there any truth to it? — Steve R. (posted on May 19, 2002)
May 19, 2002
I had my procedure done lap and I had basically NO pain. My surgery was on
a tuesday, and I woke up maybe for 2 hours the whole day. Wednesday I kept
hitting the morphine pump just to knock me out cause I was bored laying in
the hospital. Thursday I was awake and alert walking and talking, never
used the morphine pump. They took my pump away from me and I never asked
for a pain pill. I went home thursday evening and I took one pain pill to
help me sleep. I was SORE but not in pain. I felt more like I was in a
car accident and knocked around then that I had surgery.
— Diane Rhoads
May 19, 2002
Steve, your friend needs to take a refresher course in anatomy! Your
abdominal muscles are all across and up and down in your stomach! You
usually have less pain with a LAP procedure, but not always. It just
depends on the person and how tight their abdominal muscles are and their
own pain tolerance threshold. Good luck!
— DJeffrey
May 19, 2002
I was going to go LAP. You can read my profile to see the reasons why I
chose Open RNY. Even though my open incision was only 3.5 inches, it hurt.
A lot. I stand by my reasons for wanting Open and am very happy, but from
what I understand, LAP would've been a less painful procedure. Oh, by the
way...there is a little truth to what your friends have told you. The
incisions for the lap instruments cut through thicker parts of your ab
muscles. But still..overall it is likely less painful.
— PaulaM
May 19, 2002
Everyone is different, but I was never in pain with my LAP. It felt like
*I did too many sit-ups* kind of soreness. And just in case you didn't
know, with the lap, the physicians can see better than with the naked eye.
Everything is magnified onto a screen for viewing. There is also a teeny
chance of hernias with the lap. But do go with the procedure which your
surgeon is most proficient.
— Cheri M.
May 19, 2002
Most people have less pain with the lap than those who have the open. I
had the open last year. When I first met my doctor and found out that he
doesnt do the procedure laproscopically, I was disappointed. But he
explained it to me like this......he would rather do open and be able to
see everything better. That doesnt mean that the doctor's that do it lap
dont know what they are doing. But my doctor felt that this was the safest
for him. So look at the doctor and his success rate and go with what he or
she is proficient in. Good luck!
— Cory F.
May 19, 2002
I had open rny last october, and lap galbladder removal in April. The lap
is far less painful, and recovery is quicker. However the pain from the
gas they pump you full of, is quite painful.
— RebeccaP
May 19, 2002
The first thing to consider is that everyone's pain tolerances are
different. I have known patients who had open surgeries who were up and
about/back to work in record time and with few complaints. I have also
talked with a few lap patients who were "miserable" after their
procedures. Generally, however, patients who have lap surgeries have much
less discomfort due to having several tiny incisions as opposed to the
longer incision involved with open surgery. The longer incision does
involve cutting through muscle layers, NOT going around them. The four of
us in my family who have had lap RNY were changed from pain injections to
tablets the day after surgery; had only two day hospitalizations; and were
back to work 8-14 days post-op. None of us needed anything for pain after
the 4th postop day. Again, everything depends on the skill of the lap
surgeon and the patient's tolerance for pain. Best wishes!
— Diana T.
May 19, 2002
My own experience is I recovered easier from my open BPD/DS than from a lap
surgery for Acid Reflux. With my open I had one incision about 6"
long. Very little pain, even when I coughed. I was off all pain meds by day
2. On my Lap(Nisson Fundlopication) I had 5 incisions thru 5 different
muscles and all. I couldn't get comfy as every time I moved something
pulled and hurt. I couldn't cover each incision every time I coughed
either. I was on major pain meds for almost 1 1/2 weeks. With my open I was
on my side by day 2, with my lap it was almost 2 weeks. I even had a harder
time getting in and out of bed. I must say I was surprised by this but
that's just my experience!
— Linda M.
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