Hi VSG family!!!

I thought that I would post a thread for all members that had or is considering the TGVP procedure. I thought it would be a great idea for us to share our thoughts and experiences. I know of only one person so far. If you all know of any others please tell them to respond. Thanks VSG family!! :scared0:

Yes, my doctor was Dr. Jose Rodriguez. He has offices in Juarez and Tijuana, Mexico. His cost was $6200 for the Super Sleeve.

Jo

Hi, I had the Super Sleeve Plication done a few month ago by Dr. Jose Rodriguez. I am so happy with his entire surgical team and the Beliteweight team that held my hand through the whole process. I would highly recommend them.

Jo

Hi there,

Thank you for your reply can you tell me how much you have lost so far?

and how much you can eat??

Thank you again,Lisa

Looking for experienced Dr. in Mexico to perform the TGVP

Trying to decide between Dr.'s Jose Rodriguez, Dr. Corvala, and Dr. Ortiz??

Welcome any and all info!!!

Contact Beliteweight regarding Dr. Jose Rodriguez he has two locations. By now they probably have referrals who are doing very well with the Gastric Sleeve Plication and you can get to talk to the actual patients who have been there done that. You can try that with all the other Doctors you are considering too, so you are well informed.

Good luck, let us know how you get on. :confused:

I also had a Sleeve Plication done by Dr. Jose Rodriguez in Tijuana. I am currently 15 pounds from my goal weight (125 lbs) so I'm really happy. My stomach feels normal but I can only eat small portions. I love it. I went through Beliteweight and they did a fantastic job also.

Jo

I can eat roughly about 3-5 ozs before I feel full. To-date I have lost about 30 lbs. I was a small BMI and a Revision from a Band to the Super Sleeve. I have not regreted my choice.

Jo

Jo,

What location in Mexico did you have your surgery? Juarez or INT in TJ?

Congrats on your weight loss!!

I also had a Sleeve Plication done by Dr. Jose Rodriguez in Tijuana. I am currently 15 pounds from my goal weight (125 lbs) so I'm really happy. My stomach feels normal but I can only eat small portions. I love it. I went through Beliteweight and they did a fantastic job also.

Jo

Hi Joe,

Thats great!! How much did you loose??

I can eat roughly about 3-5 ozs before I feel full. To-date I have lost about 30 lbs. I was a small BMI and a Revision from a Band to the Super Sleeve. I have not regreted my choice.

Jo

sorry I didnt see the above post

Edited September 10, 201016 yr by MS LISA

Thank you. I had my surgery in Tijuana, Mexico at the INT Hospital.

i'm awaiting plication surgery in PRAGUE

I thought that I would post a thread for all members that had or is considering the TGVP procedure. I thought it would be a great idea for us to share our thoughts and experiences. I know of only one person so far. If you all know of any others please tell them to respond. Thanks VSG family!!

Edited September 15, 201016 yr by letmeeatcake

i'm awaiting plication surgery in PRAGUE

Hi Letme. Welcome to our little corner of the world. When is your surgery?

Hi

It's November 8th, thanks for the welcome. I was hoping someone would point me in the right direction re. reflux and hiatal hernias. It appears the surgeonwho is operating is prefers not to carry out the TGVP if the hernia is larger than 2cm and due to my reflux? I thought that weight loss would help with hernia's? Anyway he is going to do an endoscopy but if I insist on proceeding will have me sign some sort of liability waiver re. potential for hernia/reflux problems continuing or worsening. I'd love appreciate any insight upon this, then at least I can go ahead and decide better informed.

Thanks Again Regards

It is best to get a surgeon that will repair the hiatal hernia at the same time he does the plication. I heard it is a simple repair.

My doctor is doing it at the same time.

Dr. Watkins,

What is your opinion on the viability of the stomach after the plication surgery. I was informed that eventually the stomach would adhere to itself and really could not be taken down after a month or two. I ask this as a Barretts esophagus patient that would need the use of my stomach should my Barretts progress to esophageal cancer.

Excellent question.

The stomach will always be viable after plication. Since it is just folded in on itself and there is no cutting or stapling, there really is no issue with its viability. Reversing it would involve cutting the stitches and the subsequent bit of scar tissue around the stitches and you would be left with your normal stomach. We know this can be taken down even after many years because we've been doing this for many years when we take down plicated stomach after Nissen fundoplication (a stomach plication operation for severe reflux - heartburn) or after Lap Band surgery (the stomach is plicated over the band).

Barretts esophagus, for anyone who hasn't heard about it, is when the esophageal lining changes due to chronic reflux (heartburn, GERD). The esopagus (swallowing tube) is made to handle neutral pH Fluid such as spit and mucous and food. It really doesn't want to see gastric acid or bile. In the case of bad heartburn, the lower esophagus gets exposed to so much acid and bile that it gets irritated and chronically inflammed and has to change its cells to protect itself. These cells look more like stomach lining cells than esophageal lining cells and this is what they call Barrett's esophagus. Dr. Barrett is the physician who discovered this interesting protective mechanism by morphology in the wonderfully designed human body.

The problem with Barrett's is that it can form pre-cancerous cells over time and these can progress to cancer. This is why it is a good idea to have an endoscopy (stomach scope, EGD - esophagogastroduodenoscopy) if you suffer from severe heartburn to rule out Barrett's. If biopsies show Barrett's with low grade dysplasia (pre-cancerous change) you need to have more frequent endoscopy to monitor for progression. If you have high grade dysplasia or frank cancer cells this is when esophageal resection (cut the affected area out) is recommended. Moderate grade dysplasia is either more closely watched with frequent endoscopy or treated surgically.

The good news is that if the heartburn is treated surgically, in some cases the Barrett's will resolve (go away, cured). I have seen this many times in my own practice. Treatment typically involves addressing the associated hiatal hernia. Hiatal hernia is when the hiatus - the opening in the diaphragm (breathing muscle) - is too large and there is no "valve" to prevent acid and bile from backing up into the esophagus. With that operation, the esophagus is mobilized to ensure that an intra-abdominal portion of the esophagus is below the diaphgram. This is what we call an intact anti-reflux mechanism.

After doing laparoscopic weight loss surgery for 8+ years, I have learned that essentially 100% of patients have a hiatal hernia or at best a weak hiatus that needs repair. This is easy to do because it simply involves mobilizing the esophagus to achieve an intra-abdominal portion and stitching the hiatus until it is the appropriate size. This is very important to do in any stomach-reduction surgery because if you give a patient a smaller stomach without an intact anti-reflux mechanism, this creates more severe heartburn and frustrated patients and less successful weight loss.

I feel very strongly about creating an intact anti-reflux mechanism with each weight loss operation and I know this is important from personal experience. Many surgeons don't do this - they don't believe in it - to the detriment of their patients.

All of this to say, by fixing your hiatus, you may very well achieve resolution of your Barrett's esophagus. Even if the worse should happen and it progresses, you could still have an esophageal resection with gastric reconnection to re-establish continuity with no problem even after plication.

Brad Watkins MD

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