Acid Reflux???

[Becca 108]

So I told my mom about my revision to the sleeve and she is telling me that there is a horrible rate of on-going acid reflux. She knows someone who had the surgery and they said the reflux is horrible. Can anyone tell me if this is accurate? Is this something you can prevent with antacids?

[Jolanda 23]

I only know about myself, and I took antacids for what, the first couple of months perhaps? After then I have had no trouble with reflux at all. Not while I took the pills, either.

[mountain_lover 3]

So I told my mom about my revision to the sleeve and she is telling me that there is a horrible rate of on-going acid reflux. She knows someone who had the surgery and they said the reflux is horrible. Can anyone tell me if this is accurate? Is this something you can prevent with antacids?[/quote

After I had surgery Dec. 2, 2009, I have had acid reflux very often and I use lots of tums and it helps some, but it doesn't stop it entirely. I never had this before surgery. I think most of my problem it that I eat too late before going to sleep. I sleep in a recliner or propped up in bed and that also helps, but it still happens sometimes. I am also taking Prilosec two times a day and that doesn't stop it from happening. I will be interested in reading some more answers on here to see what others are doing to help this problem. Even with this problem, I still do not regret having done the sleeve. I have lost a total of 86 pounds pre-op and post-op, so I am very grateful that I was able to have it done.

[MuffinsMom 5]

Before surgery I did have GERD and I was taking Prilosec twice a day. The acid reflux is quite a bit more severe now than before surgery. Someone posted that's partly because the bile system is still pumping out stomach acid for a full-size stomach (to digest full-size meals), although our tummies are a fifth of what they used to be. I still take Prilosec twice a day, although it's not as effective as it was before surgery, and now take Pepcid here and there when I feel like the acid is building up. Usually a single TUMS at bedtime. I avoid eating in the evening, avoid things (like coffee) that tend to make it worse. I'm finding that following "the rules" around post-op eating helps with acid also - small bites, chewed well, take time between bites, stop when you get your signal (in my case it's burping), etc.

I have to say, if I had known I would be in this position I might have thought twice about the surgery. Still, I'm only 6 weeks out, have lost 26 lbs. and feel great in every other respect, and I'm hoping this will be temporary. All doctors seem to agree, GERD improves quite a bit when people reach a normal weight. (isn't it funny how just about EVERY medical problem we suffer would be helped by weight loss? I always used to get mad about that, haha!)

[*susan* 1,709]

Just about everyone has problems with this. Dr. Aceves explained to me in the very basic of terms that the reason for this is because we have 3/4 of our tummy removed, but our body doesn't know that yet. It continues to produce the same amount of acid it did before we had our sleeve. Eventually, the body figures it out and makes the appropriate adjustments. The best thing that worked for me is taking one Priolosec every morning.

[sleevesearch 14]

The active ingredient in nexium and prilosec do not work for me. I have switched to prevacid and it is helping. My acid problems feel like on-going hunger, all the time. So getting some relief from that is a huge relief. Doc also said I can take gaviscon during the day for more immediate relief.

But my basic understanding is that in a few short month's this should be a thing of the past!?!?! I hope!

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[BlackBerryJuice 349]

I take Nexium once a day and haven't had any reflux symptoms. I experienced some intense nausea and discomfort on occasion around week 3 post-op. The doc in the ER and my surgeon both told me to start taking my Nexium twice a day. I did for a few days, but then stopped (I have to pay out of pocket for Nexium, and it's not cheap, so that was a bit of a deterrent, as was continuing to feel icky regardless). I haven't had problems since. I don't think acid had anything to do with it, as my symptoms weren't typical heartburn stuff.

Also, just a note, bile has nothing to do with acid. Bile is released for fat absorption, and it goes into the small intestine, not stomach. The stomach itself secretes acid. When you take a PPI, you kill off the acid pumps temporarily, but new ones are reinserted quite quickly, which is why you have to continue taking a PPI for a while.

I sure am looking forward to going off of mine, as it costs a pretty penny!

[Tiffykins 672]

I take Prilosec 20mg once daily and have never had acid issues. I could wean off of it if I wanted to do so. But, my thought process at this point is "why fix something that isn't broken". The risks for taking a PPI are so minimal for my age group, and personal health that I'll pop a Prilosec every day and not think twice about it.

A lot of sleeve patients wean off their PPI by 3-6 months and have zero reflux issues. It is a concern, but can be treated. If one PPI doesn't work as effectively, the recommended option is to find one that does work or take it twice a day until our bodies figure out that making huge amounts of acid is not necessary when 80% of our stomach has been removed. I know more RNY and band patients with reflux issues than I know sleeve patients.

[DroppingAcid 0]

My acid reflex awful. I had it before sugery and a year later it is much worse. I was hoping having my gallbladder would remove some the symptoms but a week out, nothing has changed. Empty stomach hurts. Water hurts. PPI, tums and Zatacs dont help. Almost constant pain..at wits end. Help!