Question:
Has anyone seen a program on WLS on National Geographic tonight?

My mom called me and told me that there was a program on National Geographic about WLS tonight and that the morbidity rate that they quoted was very high. Has anyone seen the program?    — love to shop (posted on May 13, 2003)

May 13, 2003
Erina, did you mean "mortality rate" (death rate)? Because "morbidity rate" (sick/diseased rate) would include all of us i guess. Why else would we get this surgery, we're morbidly obese ! :o( And if it was a high mortality rate, does anyone know how high? (pre-op and worried)
   — Laura R.

May 13, 2003
For the answer to this, I think you should consult your own surgeon. When I told my sister-in-law (who works at a non-medical position in a hospital and thinks she knows everything) that my son was having surgery, she said, in a very smart way, "you know 1 in 200 die from this surgery." Well of course I knew that statistic, but I told her that with my son's surgeon, his rate was 1 in 600, and the one was an extremely high-risk patient. Also, look at the hospital you'll be at. What are the statistics there, for staph infections, nurse to patient ratio, etc? If you've done your research and have a great surgeon and hospital, your risks are greatly reduced. Also, find out what your surgeon will do for you to reduce risks. ARe you at risk for blood clots - how will he handle that? Do you have pulmonary problems - what will be done for that? Make sure you know the state of your own health as well as your doctor does, and make sure that he is taking the proper responses.
   — Carlita