I need some advice and to vent a little. I am scheduled with Dr. Aceves for sleeve revision on May 10th. I have researched the hell out of him and have found nothing bad at all. Part of the prerequisite was for me to get my band unfilled. This past weekend I had my appointment with my American bariatric surgeon (who did not place my lap-band) and he unfilled me. He asked why I was getting unfilled and I told him I was having revision in Mexico with Dr. Aceves. He then proceeded to scare the **** out of me by telling me stories of patients he has known of who have had leaks months afterward from getting surgery in Mexico and/or dying on the OR table. He said getting a virgin sleeve or lap-band is fine in Mexico but begged and pleaded with me not to get a revision. He said that it is incredibly risky and dangerous and that I will be screwed if something happens to me once I get home.

I talked to him about it more and he said that since the doc is not looking at my lap band beforehand that ought to give me a clue that I am not in good hands. He said they will just work around any complications and that could make it worse. He also said he could do my revision (here in the US) for the same price as Dr. Aceves is charging me. I completely agreed to all of this and have been talking to his office and scheduler. It has been three days and I am still waiting to hear from them on what hospital he will perform the surgery at and exactly how much. It will be one of three hospitals in the LA area.

Anyhow, I am not sure what to do. I am pretty sure Dr. Aceves has more experience with revisions than my doc does but the thought of staying in the US for the same price is tempting as well. I know Dr. Aceves is a truly capable and fantastic doctor. I have read a lot of reviews on my US doc and he is very good as well. I don't think he has the experience that Aceves does though but on the flip side I could stay in the US.

HELP!!! ADVICE PLEASE!!! So scared and confused now.

This is just my opinion and nothing to base it on other than an honest reaction when I read your post, I would stay here and have your US surgeon do it, especially when he's offering you the right price too. Good luck with whichever way you go.

Hi. I think there is nothing wrong of doing the surgery in Mexico as long as ur dr has good experience but I agree with American dr that ur need to have a follow up and revision, wherever u feel comfy to have ur review it doesn't really matter just choose the one which more easy and cheaper for u. Don't be panic about what the dr said it is a pre judge. There are bad stories about surgery oversease and lots of success stories as well the thing is they only focus on what is bad so make them more bigger than how it should be. I my opinion lest in to everybody then u the one to take the decision then don't look backward. Good luck u did will nothing bad will happen don't make the worries stop ur journey. I wish u all the best. If u need to talk at any time text me. Regards Amany

I would question the US doc about his experience. I would be concerned that he would trash another MD without checking him out. Dr. Aceves will not put a sleeve in you if he sees a problem with the band. Make sure you compare the two surgeons. The US has some pretty shaky surgeons as does Mexico. I wanted a surgeon who was experienced in band revisions. I am in the medical field and have never seen a cleaner hospital then in Mexico! Dr. Aceves doesn't pump you full of antibiotics like they do in the states. Why? because it is so clean and sterile! My daughter had a revision with Dr. Aceves and my sister had a virgin sleeve. So I have been there 3 times! I watched my sisters surgery, Dr. Aceves knows what he is doing. He does three leak tests one in the OR, one post-op and one before he will discharge you.

Dee

I had a band to sleeve revision with Dr. Aceves in June 2011. I do not regret my decision one bit. Weeks before surgery I had an upper GI done here in the states in which I emailed all this to Dr. Aceves prior to surgery. The day before surgery Dr. Aceves did another one to check out my band and they made sure my bad was completely deflated. I was warned in advance that in most cases they can do the revision in 1 surgery but if Dr. Aceves feels that the band has done to much damage he will not move forward and do the sleeve. I know someone personally that this happened to. Leaks can happen with any doctor. Leaks are more common in revision patients too since the scar tissue is not strong in the area where the band was removed. The band leaves a mess behind since this device has pretty much become a part of your stomach. These are the risks that you take going into surgery, and there are risks involoved with any surgery. I could have gone to a doc here in the states. I chose Dr. A because of his experience and very low complication rate. I knew that with the band I was more at risk for leaks so I wanted to make sure that I chose the most skilled surgeon there was. In the event that you would get a leaks weeks after surgery, why don't you ask Nina at Dr. Aceves office if there are any doctors in your area that Dr. Aceves would recommend that would agree to care for you post op. Otherwise if you don't feel comfortable with that, then I would suggest just going with the doc in your hometown. Either way, you really have to go with your gut feeling and do what you believe is the best option for you. Best of luck to you either way!

If you can get it for the same price, and your doctor has a good reputation for the surgery, I don't see the issue in staying there if that's what you decide.

This struck me as odd, though:

I talked to him about it more and he said that since the doc is not looking at my lap band beforehand that ought to give me a clue that I am not in good hands.

I don't really agree with that. My surgeon has said point-blank several times that until they get inside the abdominal cavity, they will not know what they are dealing with as far as the band and scar tissue goes. I asked because I asked if they were going to do any pre-op band testing or anything. He said several times that even if they do tests and everything looks great, until they have an eye on the stomach, they're not going to know what they're dealing with.

That's why my surgeon won't guarantee a revision will happen in one procedure. He'll take out the band and then evaluate whether there is too much scar tissue to do the sleeve.

I've been living outside the us off and on for some time. I've had many experiences of dr's in the us acting like the healthcare I'll get oversees is less than that in the us. I haven't had any problems with it at all. There are things I like better in the states and things I like better elseware. The overall level of care is the same.

Thank you to everyone for your responses. My boyfriend and I have been going back and forth over this for almost a week now. Something just tells me to stay with Dr. Aceves. I don't know what it is. It is just a feeling I have. I am pretty sure that is what I am going to do. I feel he is very qualified with revisions and Nina has been an angel throughout this entire process. Also, the staff of the US office has been really passive when it comes to me and my worries and scheduling this surgery.

Good luck to you with Dr. Aceves!

There are certainly some crappy surgeons in Mexico. I am currently rotating through surgery and most of our patients are bariatric. Many of them have very severe complications from having bypass or sleeves in Mexico - we even have one person who is literally missing her entire abdominal wall as the result of her massive complications and will never be able to eat anything ever again - but I've been asking all of them who their surgeons were in Mexico and not a single mention of Dr. Aceves has come up yet.

I can definitely identify with you. My band doctor told me that a revision would be very risky. I had an EGD done and an upper GI both reports are being sent to my revision surgeon. If you are not at PEACE with an inexperienced surgeon, then follow your heart. Rather Mexico or the US be at peace with your decision. I am actually going to another state because the surgeon does revisions frequently unlike any bariatric surgeon in my state. Seems to me the coordination of your surgery is difficult (clue)! :-).