I've decided to have my gastric sleeve surgery in Mexico and I'm really excited. I've been saving up for surgery for almost two years now and I think this will be life-changing for me.

I've been reading through hundreds of posts the last few weeks and have done outside research as well. I'm price sensitive but I won't save a few dollars and have my sleeve surgery done in a strip mall clinic (like Alamanza and Jerusalem Hospital) or use a surgeon that doesn't have a lot of experience (like Garcia and Lopez.) My life is definitely very valuable to me and I'm not willing to risk it!

I've created my master gastric sleeve surgeon list and I'm thinking about using one of the following:

• Dr. Jalil Illan Fraijo
• Dr. Alberto Aceves
• Dr. Guillermo Alvarez
• Dr. Ariel Ortiz
• dr. Ponce de Leon
• Dr. Liza Maria Pompa Gonzalez

They all have amazing reputations according to everything I've read and researched. They also operate out of real hospitals and not out of a garage!

Are there any other top Mexican surgeons I should be adding to my list for possible consideration?

i have booked my surgery with dr. Garcia in december, he has done lots of surgerys and he works from the MI hospital (which had good ratings) I did lots of research into lots of doctors in Mexico and the prices varied reatly.

we all have to remember that the drs in Mexico do these surgerys all the time, and the death rate is very very low.

I don't think it matters where we go or who with have the surgery with, we all take the risk of complications or even death. we just have to go with whom we feel safe with......follow your gut instinct.

good luck :)

i have booked my surgery with dr. Garcia in december' date=' he has done lots of surgerys and he works from the Mi hospital (which had good ratings) I did lots of research into lots of doctors in Mexico and the prices varied reatly.

we all have to remember that the drs in Mexico do these surgerys all the time, and the death rate is very very low.

I don't think it matters where we go or who with have the surgery with, we all take the risk of complications or even death. we just have to go with whom we feel safe with......follow your gut instinct.

good luck :)[/quote']

I agree with everything u said u r a hotly ????????????

Can't go wrong with Dr. Alvarez, u pay a bit more but it was never about the price with me, it's who I wanted.

I fully agree with SweetSusie, Dr Alvarez is a very skilled surgeon. He is in a hospital, even though it is older, you get VERY good care there. Dr. Alvarez and Dr. Gabe (assistant Dr) are so kind and caring. If you need anything at all, they make sure you get it. I had a wonderful experience with Dr. A. as did many before and after me. I will recommend him to anyone that asks about Mexico.

Money is real tight for me so I want to get the least expensive revision of band to sleeve that I can SAFELY get. Who are the lowest price surgeons that you've used and had a great experience with? You can respond here or to my private email, whichever you prefer.

Thank you all, Sara

keenanbeagles@att.net

Money is real tight for me so I want to get the least expensive revision of band to sleeve that I can SAFELY get. Who are the lowest price surgeons that you've used and had a great experience with? You can respond here or to my private email' date=' whichever you prefer.

Thank you all, Sara

keenanbeagles@att.net[/quote']

I don't usually respond to these types of threads, because I truly believe that most any of the top dozen or so surgeons in Mexico are quite capable of providing sleeve surgery with a great outcome.

However due to the specifics of your inquiry, I feel confident in recommending Dr. jaime Ponce de leon in Tijuana Mx. I personally chose him because his qualifications matched or exceeded those of any other surgeon I could find. And furthermore not only does he perform the surgeries he also instructs other doctors on how to perform the surgery. He has performed the sleeve surgery & revisions on many doctors (this really meant something to me). He also welcome patients with more complicated cases that many other surgeons simply just won't mess with.

Good luck. If you would like more info about Dr. Ponce de leon you can contact Trish (his coordinator) through her website Wls4betterlife.com office phone is (619) 202-6011. If you would like her cell # you can pm me for that. She wouldn't mind, but I just don't feel right putting her cell on a public forum.

I had my revision done on July 9 by Dr. Almanza. Couldn't be happier! It was $5,000.

I had my revision done on July 9 by Dr. Almanza. Couldn't be happier! It was 5' date='000.[/quote']

Great to see you on. Also good to hear you are happy & doing well.

Thanks so much! All is perfect. I couldn't ask for more. I see you are still burning pounds like nobody's business!

Had Dr. Lopez and his wife. July 24, 2012 have lost 35 pounds in 30 days. Surgery was performed in Mi hospital. Could not have asked for better care. Very professional in every aspect. Highly recommend. Am taking husband in jan for a by pass...

Sent from my iPad using VST

My sister had her surgery with Dr Kelly one year ago and she is at her goal and I too am heading there this Friday for my surgery. Nothing but great things to say about him.

Wow' date=' curt and to the point. If u took the time to actually look at my vlog it would have answered Ur questions. My Dr has done thousands of sleeves. He uses the covidien tri-staples. He has a 0% death rate. He can work out of any hospital, not just one (I chose the MAR surgery center for my operation). Most of these Drs are excellent, u just have to do Ur research and go with who u feel the most comfortable with.[/quote']

When I went to a weight loss seminar recently in NC the surgeon said that they use titanium staples. He said that's the standard for any surgery so it worries me when you say that your Dr used covidien tri-staples.

I also read another blog that said titanium staples costs around 3,000 so if the doctor is only charging 4,500 for surgery, then he's cutting cost somewhere.

Btw I know this is an old thread, but I am trying to choose a doctor that knows what they are doing without cutting cost.

Oops!

I looked through all the surgeons and my list was shorter than yours. My top 2 picks were Dr Aceves and Dr Illan. I picked Dr Illan because he has as much or more experience, I got to stay 2 days in the hospital and 2 days in a 5 star hotel (if you book directly through the Dr, otherwise the hotel is subject to change according to the girl across the hall from me who was ticked at Mexico Bariatrics). I only spent 2 days in the hospital for my csection which was WAY worse and knew I didn't want to be there for longer than I had to (worked in hospitals for years, just not my preference). I knew his entire training was in the States and he also did a transplant residency before falling in love with Bariatrics. It's proven that surgical complications go down with the number of surgeries your surgeon has performed. Dr Kelly has done around 7,000. The fact that he charges 3k less was icing on the cake.

The hospital was very nice. It had 3 parts, the smaller main part and 2 large towers. It is as large or larger than the hospital in my small town. It would pass hospital standards in the US. It's mainly a cancer hospital people come to from all over the world, but you'll be in the Bariatric section.

I would have been comfortable with either Dr. I too would not have surgery in a strip mall or stand alone clinic. Good luck with whomever you choose!