Chicago Institute of Minimally Invasive Surgery Bariatric Center

DR FRANTZIDES IS A VERY KIND, GENTLE, AND A CARING SURGEON. HE LISTENED TO ME AND TOOK HIS TIME WITH ME.

OVER TIME I HAVE DEVELOPED AN IMPRESSION OF HIM AS A "GOD". HE HAS HELPED ME LOSE WEIGHT WHEN EVERYTHING ELSE HAS FAILED.

THE OFFICE STAFF IS VERY FRIENDLY AND HELPFUL. HIS NURSE, KAREN, IS VERY KNOWLEDGABLE.

I LIKE THAT DR FRANTZIDES NEVER RUSHES ME. HE IS ALWAYS SMILING AND VERY PLEASANT.

DR FRANTZIDES IS A SURGEON I HIGHLY RECOMMEND. I RECOMMEND HIM TO MY OWN FREINDS, FAMILY, AND PATIENT'S WITH THE HIGHEST OF COMPLIMENTS.

HE PUSHES PATIENT'S TO ASK QUESTIONS, ATTEND SUPPORT GROUPS, AND USE THE INTERNET SITES.
HE GIVES SUFFICIENT PRINTED INFORMATION FOR READING AT HOME.

DR FRANTZIDES DOES FOLLOW UP WITH PATIENT'S ON A REGULAR POST OF CARE SCHEDULE.

DR FRANTZIDES WENT INTO DETAIL REGUARDING ALL RISKS THAT LAPROSCOPIC BYPASS SURGERY CAN GENERATE.

I RATE DR FRANTZIDES A #100+. THERE IS NO ONE THAT CAN COMPARE TO HIM.

BOTH SURGICAL COMPETENCE AND BEDSIDE MANNER ARE VERY IMPORTANT.

Dr. Frantzides, seem to be very personal and freindly. He express confident in what he do. He make you feel comfort and allow you plenty of time to think about what you would like to do about your weight problem. He is a great surgeon. The entire staff is wonderful. After care is wonderful. I would rate the Dr. at a scale of 1-10. Dr Frantzides would be at the top of the class with a 10 point average. I felt very secure with him. He prepared me for this surgery, with lectures, and explain the procedure very clearly. Surgical competence, bedside manner I would give this doctor 100%. (Great)

Dr. Frantzides is a very jovial kind man. I have only good things to say about him and his staff as a whole. Dr. Frantzides performed a laparascopic RNY on me and at the same time repaired a hernia (I was unaware of) and removed my gallbladder which had several stones in it. He accomplished all of this laparascopically. My stay at Evanston was pleasant and I was treated with much care and concern. I was in for 2 days and Dr. Frantzides stopped by to see me each day. I was throughly educated about what to expect and how to proceed once I got home.

Dr. Frantzides saved my life. It’s that simple. I had been contemplating weight loss surgery since July of 2003. I knew I needed to lose weight. My BMI was 52. I had heard of metabolic syndrome which can result from morbid obesity. My lab work in 2003 showed a fasting blood sugar of 116; not diabetic YET, but too high for a normal person. I had a friend die from an acute coronary event five years before. He was only about 10 years older than I.

I was motivated.

Dr. Frantzides is one of the most preeminent laparoscopic surgeons in the country. He is also a competent and confident physician. He puts you at ease immediately. He and his support staff, his surgical fellow, advanced practice Nurse Karen Thomas, and the nursing staff of 4 North Searle, Evanston Hospital were great.

The surgery on September 1st was for a Laparoscopic Roux-En-Y. The Surgery lasted 2.5 hours. Dr. Frantzides found that I had an enlarged, fatty liver, the second largest he had ever seen. It complicated the surgery for him, but he prevailed. Many surgeons would have given up. Dr. Frantzides said that an open procedure was out of the question with a liver like that. Had the liver condition not been diagnosed, I might have died within a few years of liver failure. Dr. Frantzides assured me that the best treatment for my liver was weight loss. I did not know what to say when he first told me of this. I thought about what I should say all night.

The next morning, I knew what to say to him during his rounds. I said “If the Olympic committee gave out medals for surgery, you would get the gold!”

I HIGHLY recommend Dr. Frantzides, his staff, Evanston Hospital to anyone. Please consider the laparoscopic procedure for yourselves, complications are less and recovery time is shorter.

i think Dr.Frantzides is GREAT. HE IS ALL KNOWING ABOUT GASTIC BYPASS ASK HIM ANYTHING AND HE CAN ANSWER IT FOR YOU.
His office staff is also GREAT his Fellow JOHN is the BEST. KAREN ROCKS !!!!!!!!
DR. F is very nice and explains everhting to you
I rate him a 10 out of 10
both surgical comp and bedside manner are both GREAT.
IF YOU HAVE BEEN TOLD THAT YOU CAN NOT HAVE GASTRIC BYPASS LAP THEN YOU MUST SEE DR. FRANTZIDES BECAUSE HE CAN DO IT!!!!!!. DR F AND HIS STAFF CAN GIVE YOU A BETTER LIFE. THEY GAVE ME MY LIFE BACK :)

From the first moment I met Dr. Frantzides, I knew this was the surgeon I could trust and feel comfortable with about the whole idea. I really didn't meet Dr. Frantzides again until surgery, but he made an even greater impression on me and my family at that time. The entire office staff was most helpful in helping me get insurance authorized, making sure I had all required tests and clearances, and answering all my millions of questions. I was given a complete folder of information on my first visit with details on pre-op requirements, surgical expectations, and post-op possibilites. There were packets regarding aftercare and nutritional goals for the weeks following surgery. Dr. Frantzides's "fellow" answered all of my questions regarding risks as well as informing me of some I was unaware. Dr. Frantzides also clarified some issues I had regarding laproscopic gastric bypass surgery for me. I'm so glad I decided on that type of surgery! Dr. Frantzides's head nurse Karen Thomas is a wonder. She is a font of information as she had the surgery a few years ago and understands the obstacles and joys. She's a heck of a hand-holder. She also runs several support groups a month for my doctor and several others. These I found invaluable. I find it very difficult to find anything negative to say about my treatment both surgically and personally. From office staff to hospital staff, they couldn't have been more professional and caring.

Dr. Frantzides is amazing..caring, brilliant and he has a wonderful bedside manner. He spent a lot of time with me aswering all of my questions. I think he is the best skilled surgeon in Chicago; perhaps the United States. He performed RNYs on four of my friends and they also had great success and NO complications. They have an extremely knowledgeable nurse, Karen, who is also a gastric bypass patient. They also have many support group options.

Dr. Frantzides gets an A++ in my book. My life is amazing now. I am so happy.

I felt very comfortable w/doctor the first time I met him, he talked with me not at me. He let me know he was there for me, all the way. I still feel the same way about the doctor, and his staff, Karen his nurse, took me for my first walk, the night of surgery, and was there to congradulate me on passing my upper gi xray with a "shot glass of Juice and water". I did EVERY thing I was told down to the last detail, and I was a very good patient,doing my breathing treatments, wearing the scd boot's in bed. I had no narcotics post op for pain, (I had Torodal, IV,) as the anestholigist felt that if I needed them I would have to go to ICU, because of my sleep apnea history, and I didn't want that. I never had any real post op PAIN, I had an achey feeling on my left side, but was tolerable. From walking into the hospital for the surgery to leaving at discharge time was appox. 52 hours. I feel great, I am so thankful to Dr
Frantzides,and his staff, he has given my son back his mother.

Meeting Dr. Frantzides was pretty much what I expected, based on what others have written. Friendly but not fawning, confident but not cocky, he spoke frankly about the various risks associated with the surgery, but also put them into the context of what I personally might expect.
Someone else on this site recommended selecting a surgeon based not on the "warm & fuzzy" attributes that might draw you to liking one person more or less than another, but rather on their surgical skills only. While it may seem difficult for a lay person to measure these, I feel confident that one can look at Dr. Frantzides' educational background, experience with this and other procedures, his standing in the profession and his track record among his patients and say that he is among the very best at what he does. The fact that he has a good smile and makes one feel at ease is pure gravy at this point. I'll post more RE: bedside manner, etc. when I get there.

POST-SURGERY UPDATE: I can't honestly say that I've seen a whole lot of Dr. Frantzides since surgery. I do think he stopped in to see me both days I was in the hospital. As always, he was upbeat and positive that I would heal well and quickly. At my one week check-up, he examined my incisions, pronounced them on track, and answered my few questions. From what I've read, he seems to be a bit more talkative with other patients, but that is probably a reflection of what different patients require. All I know is, at one month out, that I feel no pain, I've had no complications, and my pouch is acting just as I figured it would. If there is more that you should be asking of your surgeon, I'm not sure what it is.

P.S. I would recommend Dr. Frantzides for his obvious surgical skills anyway, but his Bariatric Coordinator, Karen Thomas, is worth her (surgically reduced!) weight in gold. I can only hope he appreciates how much she adds to his practice.

Dr. Frantzides quelled all of my fears. I had been contemplating surgery for over two years and when I finally got enough courage up to talk to my PCP, Dr. F. was the only surgeon that was recommended.
The office staff at the initial meeting were amazing and the nurse, Karen T., I don't even have words to describe what a fantastic person she is to everyone. Dr. F. put me at ease right away and answered all of my questions directly and without "dumbing-down" any of the answers. I left the office with a surgery date.
As the time of surgery neared, I was told by others that I was "too big" to have baroscopic surgery. Dr. F. hadn't even clued me in on this part. I didn't realize that people over a certain BMI were supposed to have open surgery. I am well over that specified BMI and never even considered open surgery.
On July 19th, 2004, I had surgery. Dr. F. and Karen both visited me in the hospital and just made me smile. Dr. F. may seem gruff, but it truly is in the best interest of his patients. He is a jovial man who truly cares for his patients.
Aftercare has been wonderful thanks to Karen. She is a remarkable woman who allows you to call her with the smallest questions.
I would have no qualms recommending Dr. Frantzides and his staff to anyone (and I do mean ANYONE - no matter their BMI) considering WLS.