rainyrue

Well, depending on where you live... they charge $9,000 in Mexico, plus you have to get there.... if your'e anywhere near the midwest, Dr. Watkins, in Cincinnati, OH, only charges $9,900... and he seems to have done more GPS than all other US doctors, except Dr. Cotter in Utah.

I am going to have Dr. Watkins do my GPS, just saving money now and hope to have everything together before Thanksgiving... for my money, I'd rather stay in the friendly confines of the USA, plus the nurses at Cincinnati Weight Loss Center are the BEST

Dr. Watkins: Thank you for your very clear and thorough answer. You are a very rare, and caring, doctor to actually spend time explaining things to people in an online chat room, I am very impressed with this generosity, as you have answered all my questions and I am totally ready to get all my arrangements done and make my GPS appointment at your clinic!!!

Congratulations, CK... you inspire me like crazy. I can't BELIEVE you went to the gym after 6 days, though. Do be careful about causing bleeding, but then I guess your trainer should know what to do.

I can't wait till its ME saying that.... although I was finally just Insurance approved for lap band surgery after a 6-month fight, I decided I didn't want it anymore. In the six months since I started my insurance fight, GPS (VSP to some) came along... I wanna be a stomach stitcher!!!

Best of luck to you. Rainyrue

I can't find the other 2 US docs that do the plication for the life of me. In all my research I've found Dr. Cottam, the Mexico doc and I saw something somewhere about a doc at the University of Florida but when I looked him up I didn't find anything about him doing this type of surgery. Guess I'll just sit back and wait awhile and keep trying to lose weight on my own until more info becomes available. Thanks for all the info!!!!

Hi, K... you probably have discovered by now that the other surgeon in the US who has done the most VSPs is Dr. Watkins, in Cincinnati Weight Loss Clinic. He's done like 12 or 13 by now.... I've heard real good things about him. Good luck!! That's the surgery I'm going to have, and hope to go to Dr. Watkins.

Rainyrue

Dear Dr. Watkins:

Thanks for the clear and informative post on the viability of the stomach post GPS. I am sure to be aFUTURE patient, as I have read enough now that I am letting my insurance approval for the lap band go unused and saving money for the surgery.

As I prepare, by educating myself, three burning questions have come to mind about long-term GPS which are somewhat related to this post, and others may also be interested to know:

1. If my stomach is folded in on itself indefinitely, is there any chance of the folded up part growing bacteria, or getting an infection or peritinitis from being all folded up??? Say... could food get stuck in those folded up parts and fester??? I read this somewhere, and hope its not true.

2. If my stomach is folded up indefinitely, what if I ever needed to find out if I had cancer... would an MRI be able to "see through" the folds??? Hope this never happens, but it did cross my mind.

3. Some woman on the Lap Band site claims that GPS is the a "modern version of stomach stapling," and that after time, there will be leaks and cracks and horrible consequences as we get older.

While I realize this surgery is still experimental, wasn't it done in Greece for a number of years? Has that terrible result actually happened to anybody??? And... why arent' more doctors doing this? It is so cool.

Thank you kindly, I am so glad they put up this site as information is hard to find.