If you go to www.surgery.com, it will tell you the following (I got this from typing "deaths from sleeve gastrectomy" into my search engine)

The American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery lists the complication rate in vertical sleeve gastrectomy to be relatively low, even among patients considered to be at high risk. Cumulatively the overall mortality (death) from vertical sleeve gastrectomy is 0.39 percent—lower than with traditional bariatric surgeries. (last updated 11/24/2009)

From an article on www.gastricbypassfacts.com, here is a extract from "How Does the Sleeve Gastrectomy Work?"

The risks and complications of the sleeve gastrectomy:As with all forms of weight loss surgery, the vertical gastrectomy does carry risk and these will clearly vary from one patient to the next and must be discussed with your physician. Complications might include:

• Gastric leakage and fistula 1.0%
• Deep vein thrombosis 0.5%
• Non-fatal pulmonary embolus 0.5%
• Post-operative bleeding 0.5%
• Splenectomy 0.5%
• Acute respiratory distress 0.25%
• Pneumonia 0.2%
• Death 0.25%

http://healthengine.com.au/article/sleeve-gastrectomy.html

This article quotes " The mortality rate in gastric sleeve is 1:500 and it lies between the gastric band, which is the safest, and the laparoscopic gastric bypass, which carries the highest risk."

So the first source says 3.9 patients out of 1000, the second source says 2.5 patients out of 1000 and the third says 2 out of 1000. So I would feel comfortable (based on these 3 sources) saying the death rate is somewhere between 2 and 4 per 1000.

To contrast that - imagine 1000 people walking around that are your height and weight - with your exact health problems. How many of them would die in the next year from their health problems?

From something I was reading this week on another forum - surgeons who perform 100 or more sleeves per year have lower risk rates. Hospitals that perform over 150 sleeves per year have lower risk rates.

If you are considering a surgeon, ask how many procedures he/she has performed in a year, and how many he/she has performed in total. Then ask the same two questions about how many of his patients died. This will give you an idea where your surgeon is versus the norms. Also ask about the hospital you will have the surgery performed in - how many procedures do they do a year?

Any surgery is scary and has risks. You can't go through life avoiding all risks. For me - the risk of dying of heart problems from NOT DOING this surgery and staying obese was much higher than the risks from the surgery. This surgery was the right decision for me. I wish you good luck on making your decision.

Statistics are a funny thing - they can be manipulated. See most Dr's report low to no complication rates. Here is the kicker - that includes numbers for people that have complications DURING surgery. The rates for people that die post op are not included in the surgeons numbers. There are a few documentaries on Netflix about the medical system using statistics in their favor.

I 110% agree that everyone needs to weigh the options (obesity vs surgery). And we all have to remember, no matter how simple the surgery, there are risks associated. I think I cried on and off for a week pre op wondering if I was doing the right thing. You need to do a lot of soul searching and be prepared for anything.

I would like to also add that the way death info is gathered is flawed. My sister died of breast cancer that spread to her bones. She died when her spine and ribs essentially collapsed in on her organs. Cause of death on the certificate "heart failure with cancer contributing" what?

I was sharing this story with a friend and he told me about his SIL who had terminal lung cancer. She was in the hospital for a treatment and got MRSA and died probably a year sooner due to that. Her death certificate however did not list MRSA, but did list cancer.

It makes me very skeptical of WLS death reporting since I suppose that if it happens after surgery it isn't counted as due to WLS. It probably all says heart failure...

I agree with you both,CowgirlJane and Day Dreamer - the way the death is classified can really skew the data. Not having the raw data to base my conclusions on is why I cited the sources for the information. I do think Mark Twain was right when he said there are three kinds of lies - Lies, Damn Lies, and Statistics. But I don't know a better way to give people thinking about the surgery what their potential risks are.

Thanks for commenting on the post.

Sharon

question: i would like to understand the risk of intubation post sleeve. any data? thanks

My surgeon told me that with this surgery, 1/100 will die, 3/100 will get a leak. I thought they were pretty good odds.

It's a very serious decision. Yes this surgery is life saving but it is major surgery. You really have to decide as an individual what is best for you. I was so sick I wasn't doing anything but dying, living was hard. Now I have my life back. I am forever thankful.

Statistics are a funny thing - they can be manipulated. See most Dr's report low to no complication rates. Here is the kicker - that includes numbers for people that have complications DURING surgery. The rates for people that die post op are not included in the surgeons numbers. There are a few documentaries on Netflix about the medical system using statistics in their favor.

I 110% agree that everyone needs to weigh the options (obesity vs surgery). And we all have to remember' date=' no matter how simple the surgery, there are risks associated. I think I cried on and off for a week pre op wondering if I was doing the right thing. You need to do a lot of soul searching and be prepared for anything.[/quote']

One thing is they don't appear to give the stats based on how many months out. My bro who is a Dr, got the VSG, and developed a leak, almost died, and still says best thing he did, says when take the stats over a longer period (like 6 months); complication and death stats jump to like 10%

Still low IMHO.

Mary

I've always thought about this in two ways.

1) I can stay morbidly obese. Develop Diabetes, congestive heart failure, kidney trouble, everything else that's run in my family and linked to diabetes, and die a slow, decaying, miserable painful death while living a life of "what might have beens" and false hopes, barely making it, barely surviving and barely able to move when I get older.

2) I can take my 1 in 500 or whatever risk, and get my life to be on track with what I want it to be. After trying every diet known to man, and working my ass off in the gym, I know I have a choice. Live an adventurous fun crazy life, or die slowly.

I was told this, read this and having the surgery is what was best for me. I refuse to have my autopsy read "death by food"

i had 3 c- sections and was given similar risks and was there a choice to say no and lose my life and baby, I chose to have my children to give them life. I know it's not the best comparison, I chose to give the life inside me a better chance, as I chose to have the surgery to give me a better life.

I can't fathom what I would feel if I had problems because everything went fine. Just like I wouldn't want anyone to understand what its like to lose an adult child because it is the worst thing that can happen to a parent no matter how old their child is.

My heart breaks for those who had horrible experiences with this surgery. I don't think one person can agree to having any type of surgery with out understanding it may result in death. Risks are explained very thoroughly. I'm sorry for those who suffer, whose odds were not in their favor.

fantastic info!!! Thank you!

question: i would like to understand the risk of intubation post sleeve. any data? thanks

I know your question is really old and you've probably heard the answer by now, but thought I'd post in case anyone else was curious.... Intubation wouldn't have any impact on your sleeve because the tube goes in your trachea, which leads to your lungs, not your esophagus, which leads to your stomach. An NG (nasogastric) tube, however, could be an issue if they accidently rupture your sleeve. Some people even advise to wear a medical bracelet indicating "no NG tube" or some other alert so they know you've had a VSG.

How long has the sleeve been around? The one regularly used.....not staples or the really early versions.

How long has the sleeve been around? The one regularly used.....not staples or the really early versions.

I can't give you a number but they have been doing gastrectomies for decades to treat peptic ulcers, stomach cancers and other things. If you research "gastrectomy" rather than VSG you might find more info. The "sleeve" part of our surgery is just because of the shape.

How long has the sleeve been around? The one regularly used.....not staples or the really early versions.

Staples are still used in the regular sleeve.

Stomach reduction has been used for weight loss as part of the DS sense 1986. In this case, only 70% of the stomach may be removed... compared to the 85 in the sleeve...the same part is removed, and the pyloris was also kept intact at this time, like the sleeve does. One reason to have the sleeve and not RNY is you can safely scope all of the remaining stomach for cancers and such.

I'm choosing the sleeve because I figured if anything were to happen I could always revise to the bypass. If I were to go to the bypass that would be it. No revising. And before you jump on me and say that I could always "revise to the sleeve", that is VERY RARE.