DrHekier

Hello everybody. Dr. Keilin and I have the weekend off; she got me to join her to come to Dallas as she attends a knitting convention. Hey it could be worse, there are a lot worse addictions and more expensive hobbies that one's wife can have.... (I for myself will spend time in the bookstores and computer and electronics stores.) Checking the thread I see a few people have mentioned cravings and how to deal with them. Physicians have learned that for some people onset of cravings, especially for carbohydrates (e.g snacks, chocolate, etc.) may be brought on by having a low protein intake. I recently found a scientific article that reported that intake of a protein meal decreases the level of ghrelin in your body. (Ghrelin is a hormone that appears to correspond with hunger; the higher the ghrelin level in your body, presuambly the more hunger you sense.) We recommend ensuring that you are taking in adequate protein. Many of our patients are utilizing the protein supplements from Bariatric Advantage. (Dr. Keilin and I buy them too.) My wife's favorite is the Profect protein drink that comes in the test tube looking container. I stick with the powders and add them to skim milk. Check out the 'estore' on Lap Band Surgery Texarkana- Serving Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana (weird how that title comes up; its www dot noscales dot com ) Regarding the cancelled Mt Pleasant support group: Attendance has been so low that it got to the point that it was unfair for Dr. Keilin and I to ask our staff to go the meetings. For the last meeting that was held, only five people showed up :tongue: We may restart the Mt. Pleasant support group meetings again in the future if we can get a higher level of attendance, but for now we encourage people to attend either the support group in Texarkana or in Mt. Pleasant.

We are shocked and saddened to learn that one of our group members, Karen Taylor of DeQueen, AR has died in a car accident this past week. The notice was in the Texarkana Gazette this weekend and was just brought to my attention just right now. Please have her and her family in your thoughts and prayers. With a heavy heart, Dr Ron Hekier.

Our group is a certified Center of Excellence, if it is a Medicare issue for you. We are possibly a bit closer than New Orleans.

Sorry I didn't post the new support group dates for October this weekend. I ended up getting some SmartLipo laser lipolysis done on my abs and love handles this weekend, and was so excited about it I forgot about updating the website. (Dr. Keilin did my procedure for me so I got a discount! Sort of... It's her birthday this week, and that always means jewelery.) At tonight's support group in Texarkana, Betty gave away a door prize; a copy of the book "Walk Away the Pounds" that includes a DVD. We have a few more copies and will give them off our blog page again, as in our prior contests. This time we will wait about a week to give away the book, so that people in the Mt. Pleasant support group can hear about it and log on to the blog. Remember, holidays are coming up, and we all need to get in the habit of making exercise a routine part of our lives. Don't forget to check the blog page for general info, and the contest! I'll update the seminar and support group schedules tonight as well. Goodbye all.

Capital one health care financing has good terms if your credit score is good. One of our patients got an interest rate of 1.9% recently. Another one got a loan with an interest rate of 10.99%, so it all depends on your credit score. I don't know the link off the top of my head, but I think we have a link in our website which is in my signature below.

Sugarbear we wish you a speedy recovery. Drop us a line, email Betty or Jamie to let them know how you are doing, (and who you are ) Remember this month there is no support group meeting in Mt. Pleasant. Tonight's meeting was in Texarkana, and the next one is in Idabel, OK on September 24. Always check out the support group schedule on the website. We are having a new contest on the blog page. The last contest was for your mind, a free copy of the Khalia Ali book, and this contest is for your stomach. We are offering a $50 gift certificate to the Ironwood Grill, a great healthy restaurant here in Texarkana. We're already thinking of the holiday season coming upon us, and want to encourage healthy eating.(Go to the main page at Lap Band Surgery Texarkana- Serving Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana and then click on 'blog'.)

Hi everybody! I've been laying off the board for a while because I didn't want people to feel I'm lurking or spying. Except for hippmom; yes we are tracking you and have logged your IP address and are preventing you and only you for accessing our website: Texas Arkansas Lap Band :confused: For those coming to the Texarkana support group next Monday, be aware there will be a new location. The YWCA was sold and the new owner will not be renting their room any longer. We need a new location by next Monday, and so far we have lined up Wadley hospital. That room is a bit small if we have much over 50 or 60 people so Betty said she may try to find something else in the next week. Obviously we can't call 500 people individually, so we will try to send out a newsletter. (Say thanks to Deb and Tammy when you see them next week because they are going to have to lick 500 stamps, yuck! :confused: ) The new location should be finalized in the next couple of days and will be on our website. Go to our website and click on seminars and support groups and the new location will be noted in the next couple of days. Also, Dr. Keilin recently read a book by Khalia Ali on her Lap Band journey. Ms. Ali is the daughter of Muhammed Ali, the former heavyweight champoin of the world. We are giving away a free copy of the book on our blog page. Go to the website and click on blog. Or here's a direct link : Lap Band blog And one final note: Many people have wondered about getting enough protein. For many Lap Band patients, getting protein can become an issue because you might have significant restriction when eating meat products. Our practice has partnered with Bariatric Advantage, a company specializing in supllements for weight loss surgery patients. We can now offer protein supplelements made with the bariatric surgery patient in mind. Go to our website, Lap Band Surgery Texarkana- Serving Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana and click on 'Estore.' See y'all soon.

Today we performed our 476th Lap Band! We are proud of our patient's accomplishments. Check out our seminar schedule on our website to come to our next seminar. We also encourage all prospective patients to come to our support groups to talk to our patients.

I don't think it would make a difference one way or the other.

A fair number of our patients have a hiatal hernia which we repair at the time of surgery. You would probably want to have a recent upper GI study or endoscopy study to document the extent of the hernia. If it is rather large, such as having most of the stomach in the chest, that might be an issue.

We have many patients from Arkansas, being on the Texas/Arkansas border. Our group and hospital were recently designated as a Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence by the ASBS/SRC. If we are close enough to you, we would be happy to help.

Don't worry. Some people can feel it, others can not. Don't worry it's still there. I remember about 3 years ago one of our patients called us frantically to say that her port flipped and didn't feel right. She rushed over to the office and said "Here feel this, feel this under my scar on the right side of my belly." We told her "The port is on the other side ." She couldn't tell where the port was. For some people however it is more noticeable.

Sounds like you might need an unfill. Nighttime regurgitation/reflux is often a sign of excessive tightness. Don't be worried about an unfill. Sometimes that is what you need to LOSE WEIGHT. I saw three patients in clinic this week that were unfilled during their last routine visit 6 weeks ago and LOST WEIGHT since that time. You see, when you are too tight, you are going to resort to eating foods that get through your band. That usually means (1) thick liquids such as ice cram or shakes and (2) Fried or crispy foods such as tortilla chips. If you are to tight an get an unfill you may find your eating habits improve and you lose weight. Good luck.

Just a reminder to all the folks who had their surgery in Texarkana that our support group in Mt. Pleasant meets tonight (Monday May 21) at the Mt Pleasant hospital at 7:00PM. The support group schedule is on our website at Lap Band Surgery Texarkana- Serving Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana ; click the link for 'free seminar' on the homepage. PS Not sure why the link to noscales . com is not showing above.

Most of our patients need somewhere around three fills to get to their 'sweet spot.' I know one patient who lost 99 pounds on one fill, and others that didn't start losing until several fills. Each person is unique and it might take some time to get to your sweet spot.

Ok, I'm biased because (a) I'm also a Band surgeon and ( I'm a Dr C fan (even thought I've never met him!) but I have to agree. And I also agree with the post by 'mypov.' A radiologist without a signficant amount of experience reading films on Lap Band patients may read a film in a way that is confusing to the surgeon who actually placed the Band in the first place.

You might need to get some fluid taken out, an 'unfill' is what some people call it.

I think this is one of the most important threads in a long time on LBT. Lap Band surgeons constantly struggle with trying to convince people that if you aren't losing weight, that doesn't automatically mean you need a fill. Too full is bad!

(Speaking as a Lap Band doc, not a patient, so I realize I may be WAY off base.....) My idea of the sweet spot is when you barely know your Lap Band is there. I worry that if the band is 'tight' that it may limit what you eat and you gravitate towards things that are easier to eat such as very dry crunchy foods (tortilla chips, cheetos, pretzels) or liquids such as chili, shakes, Soups, etc, which we have seen occasionally in our patients. My favorite story about the sweet spot is a patient of ours who is a 66 year old man who has lost about 90 pounds in his first 9 months. Every time I see him in clinic he tells me he thinks his Band is broken because he never feels tightness, nor any restriction! I think that is the perfect sweet spot, when the Band helps control your hunger, but doesn't prevent what you can eat. I tell my patients to focus more on hunger control than on tightness/restriction. My two cents.

I seem to recall the slippage rate being quoted as 1%. Our practice has a slippage rate of a bit under 1 percent so that seems right to me.

I'll ask my office manager if we have had any patients use a specific attorney, but I know Walter Lindstrom is highly regarded.

There may be different 'flavors' of Fed BCBS, with some PPOs providing preauthorization. We have been told by our Fed BCBS representative that they do not provide pre-authorizations or pre-determinations. They say if you meet criteria they will pay for it so they are asking us to take it on faith. We are waiting to get reimbursed on our first Federal Blue Cross Blue Shield patient done in 2007. If we see there are no problems with reimbursement than we will do them more frequently. I read here on this board of another patient with Federal Blue Cross Blue Shield who paid the surgeon and hospital and then filed on the insurance to get the reimbursement.

I think you may be a touch too tight. I always remind my patients that if you are too tight it can lead to inadequate weight loss. Excessive tightness causes restriction to 'good foods.' Some patients who are too tight compensate by having high calorie foods. Tortilla chips is VERY common; chili, shakes, Soups are other common items. I would probably consider taking some Fluid out. If you could feel better satisfaction and early satiety with 'good food' it would prbably help you. Good luck.

I would suggest you consider calling the insurance company as well. Sometimes they seem more receptive if a 'customer' (i.e. patient) calls in addition to the doctors office.

Not quite sure what you mean about tipping them off. An insurance policy is a contract between you and the insurance company. If a procedure is a covered benefit then they have to provide it if you meet their requirements. Give them a call. Everyone's policy is potentially different. So your policy with that payor may be different than someone elses, which is why you need to call yourself. Good luck!