I found an interesting blog describing all the bad things that weight loss surgeries do to the body. It was an interesting read and I wanted to see if the Vets had any insight on this. She seems a very passionate about what she writes. Anyway here is the Blog....http://suethsayings.blogspot.com/. Have any vets had any of the problems she stated?

No worries, AuriP, I'm glad you raised the topic. It nudged me to do some reading which I was planning on doing anyway.

My annoyance is with her, not you.

Keep on keepin' on!

Let me make this clear that I in no way believe the hype she's protraying. I just found her to be extremely angry and vengeful and wanted some insight. I am still going to get the surgery. I just wanted to verify how quacky she seems without me immediately saying so. I have a friend who has gone from 389 to 179 and has kept it off for 4 years with none of the problems this woman has stated.

No one thinks you are being contrary..it is her that has ruffled feathers...Thank you for bringing it out for us all to look at....You did good....K

Edited December 17, 201312 yr by RJ'S/beginning

I am not sure but some of what she says makes sense. i think she had a bad personal experience. If you are unable to get enough nutrients I am sure you will probalby lose your hair and perhaps you could even lose your teeth and it could affect your heart and what if your hunger returns worse than ever after 5 years? I am not sure now if I am going to do the surgery I'm scared.

she does talk about the gastric sleeve and she has had gastric bypass surgery herself?

how ever she says she has a friend who weighs 555 lbs and 48 of her friends died from wls now that is obviousely a lie. who even has 48 friends?

I am also going to point out something! First off my drs made it clear, u can not judge wls and compare it , because wls has evolved so much that bypass is way different then it was 5-10 years ago! Second, google facts on sleeve patients but not for weight loss! Sleeve has been preformed to save lives for years! It's main purpose was for stomach cancer! I just had a lady tell me the other day she had it because half her stomach died from a car accident 10 years ago! I guess with all these positive success stories, how one ladies rampage can turn heads, is mind boggling , and even more to believe half that crap! For you out there who have not gotten your sleeve yet, let me tell you, ask your dr about the risks! My dr flat out said " you will not die from this surgery" !

I am also going to point out something! First off my drs made it clear, u can not judge wls and compare it , because wls has evolved so much that bypass is way different then it was 5-10 years ago! Second, google facts on sleeve patients but not for weight loss! Sleeve has been preformed to save lives for years! It's main purpose was for stomach cancer! I just had a lady tell me the other day she had it because half her stomach died from a car accident 10 years ago! I guess with all these positive success stories, how one ladies rampage can turn heads, is mind boggling , and even more to believe half that crap! For you out there who have not gotten your sleeve yet, let me tell you, ask your dr about the risks! My dr flat out said " you will not die from this surgery" !

Sorry but that last statement is not true...You can die as a result of this surgery. The complications can lead to death...I know I almost died.

My surgeon was very clear before he did this procedure that I knew there was a small chance that I could die...I almost did!!!!

The fact is though that only a small percentage do die....Every surgery is a risk.....even having your teeth removed...There are numbers out there to support it...

Some day I will tell my story in print so that I may help educate people about what can happen...

But I have no regrets. I see this surgery as a miracle that gave me back my life although a year + out I am still struggling with the complications of WLS...

I agree with Laura and others who feel this article is written by someone with very skewed feelings. It is not objective whatsoever. I love how she relates this story:

I am reminded of the patient who called me up, crying, after her gastric bypass. "They never told me about the side effects,"

I have mixed feelings on this. First off, anybody who even is sitting in pre-op not knowing what the side effects are should be denied the surgery due to sheer stupidity. Really? You are going to have a surgery and not have a clue as to what is going to happen? Ok ... sure ... let's just believe that for a second and combine it with a medical team who is not going to mention anything about possible side effects. If you don't know the side effects of ANYTHING a medical professional is doing to you, then sorry, you shouldn't be getting the procedure. Come back when you have done your research.

As far as the sexual dysfunction, I would love to see what her research in to male ED revealed. It is an easy search to conduct but again, this would not support her skewed view on WLS, so of course, she doesn't report on this. I'm not saying there aren't men with decreased performance post WLS, but the research suggests their issues may only by tangentially related to WLS. More likely other underlying issues were present.

The bottom line is you will always be able to find the contrarian viewpoints on any topic and when they deal with personal issues, they will be even more stauncher in their defence. God bless them. The world needs people like Rush Limbaugh in the world ... right?

Hmmm ...

A person can die getting a tooth pulled and even toe surgery. ALL surgeries carry a risk.

And btw.. If she had 48 friends die from WLS .. I sure wouldn't want to be her friend.

A person can die getting a tooth pulled and even toe surgery. ALL surgeries carry a risk. And btw.. If she had 48 friends die from WLS .. I sure wouldn't want to be her friend.

I just died laughing in a waiting room! People were looking at me like I was crazy!

One other point, which may be beating a dead horse...

My pre-op appointment essentially consisted of my sitting with the PA and signing a huge stack of paperwork that said in some way on every page, "I understand that I could die." There were other things that I needed to sign off on: injury, surgical failure, etc…but anyone who leaves that appointment and doesn't know that there is a surgical risk is either not reading and listening, or right in the middle of the river of denial.

I had an emergency gallbladder operation 5 years ago. I don't remember signing this kind of paperwork on that, and it was much more likely that I could die from that surgery or complications.

Everything is a risk, but remaining obese was the much bigger risk to me.

Poked me to get my long term results started. Here is an excerpt I found:

Ann Surg. 2010 Aug;252(2):319-24. doi: 10.1097/SLA.0b013e3181e90b31.

Long-term results of laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy for obesity.

Himpens J, Dobbeleir J, Peeters G.

Author information

Abstract

OBJECTIVE:

To determine the mid- and long-term efficacy and possible side effects of laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy as treatment for morbid obesity.

SUMMARY BACKGROUND DATA:

Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy is still controversial as single and final treatment for morbid obesity. Some favorable short-term results have been published, however long-term results are still lacking.

METHODS:

In the period between November 2001 and October 2002, 53 consecutive morbidly obese patients who, according to our personal algorithm, were qualified for restrictive surgery were selected for laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy. Of the 53 patients, 11 received an additional malabsorptive procedure at a later stage because of weight regain. The percentage of excess weight loss (EWL) was assessed at 3 and 6 years postoperatively. A retrospective review of a prospectively collected database was performed for evaluation after 3 years. Recently, after the sixth postoperative year, patients were again contacted and invited to fill out a questionnaire.

RESULTS:

Full cooperation was obtained in 41 patients, a response rate of 78%. Although after 3 years a mean EWL of 72.8% was documented, after 6 years EWL had dropped to 57.3%, which according to the Reinhold criteria is still satisfactory. These results included 11 patients who had benefited from an additional malabsorptive procedure (duodenal switch) and 2 patients who underwent a "resleeve" between the third and sixth postoperative year. Analyzing the results of the subgroup of 30 patients receiving only sleeve gastrectomy, we found a 3-year %EWL of 77.5% and 6+ year %EWL of 53.3%. The differences between the third and sixth postoperative year were statistically significant in both groups. Concerning long-term quality of life patient acceptance stayed good after 6 + years despite the fact that late, new gastro-esophageal reflux complaints appeared in 21% of patients.

CONCLUSIONS:

In this long-term report of laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, it appears that after 6+ years the mean excess weight loss exceeds 50%. However, weight regain and de novo gastroesophageal reflux symptoms appear between the third and the sixth postoperative year. This unfavorable evolution might have been prevented in some patients by continued follow-up office visits beyond the third year. Patient acceptance remains good after 6+ years.

Comment in

Surgery: Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy as the first-line surgical option for morbid obesity. [Nat Rev Endocrinol. 2010]

I thought this site had some good stats also:

www.bariatric-surgery-source.com/gastric-sleeve-surgery.html

Hope this helps.

I am also going to point out something! First off my drs made it clear, u can not judge wls and compare it , because wls has evolved so much that bypass is way different then it was 5-10 years ago! Second, google facts on sleeve patients but not for weight loss! Sleeve has been preformed to save lives for years! It's main purpose was for stomach cancer! I just had a lady tell me the other day she had it because half her stomach died from a car accident 10 years ago! I guess with all these positive success stories, how one ladies rampage can turn heads, is mind boggling , and even more to believe half that crap! For you out there who have not gotten your sleeve yet, let me tell you, ask your dr about the risks! My dr flat out said " you will not die from this surgery" !

Sorry but that last statement is not true...You can die as a result of this surgery. The complications can lead to death...I know I almost died.

My surgeon was very clear before he did this procedure that I knew there was a small chance that I could die...I almost did!!!!

The fact is though that only a small percentage do die....Every surgery is a risk.....even having your teeth removed...There are numbers out there to support it...

Some day I will tell my story in print so that I may help educate people about what can happen...

But I have no regrets. I see this surgery as a miracle that gave me back my life although a year + out I am still struggling with the complications of WLS...

I think you miss understood my last very last point, my dr said I would not die, not the rest of the population , just a conversation pertaining to me; however he did make it well know. That I could die from complications after the surgery for the first 8 weeks! My statement wasn't untrue , not at all! He was talking to me, but I picked amazing drs that are confident an do not do any procedures unless they feel the outcome will be a success! That being said, any procedure can become fatal! Knowing 49 people that have died from wls is insane to all of us! Point is, the lady is a crack pipe!

I am also going to point out something! First off my drs made it clear, u can not judge wls and compare it , because wls has evolved so much that bypass is way different then it was 5-10 years ago! Second, google facts on sleeve patients but not for weight loss! Sleeve has been preformed to save lives for years! It's main purpose was for stomach cancer! I just had a lady tell me the other day she had it because half her stomach died from a car accident 10 years ago! I guess with all these positive success stories, how one ladies rampage can turn heads, is mind boggling , and even more to believe half that crap! For you out there who have not gotten your sleeve yet, let me tell you, ask your dr about the risks! My dr flat out said " you will not die from this surgery" !

Sorry but that last statement is not true...You can die as a result of this surgery. The complications can lead to death...I know I almost died.

My surgeon was very clear before he did this procedure that I knew there was a small chance that I could die...I almost did!!!!

The fact is though that only a small percentage do die....Every surgery is a risk.....even having your teeth removed...There are numbers out there to support it...

Some day I will tell my story in print so that I may help educate people about what can happen...

But I have no regrets. I see this surgery as a miracle that gave me back my life although a year + out I am still struggling with the complications of WLS...

I think you miss understood my last very last point, my dr said I would not die, not the rest of the population , just a conversation pertaining to me; however he did make it well know. That I could die from complications after the surgery for the first 8 weeks! My statement wasn't untrue , not at all! He was talking to me, but I picked amazing drs that are confident an do not do any procedures unless they feel the outcome will be a success! That being said, any procedure can become fatal! Knowing 49 people that have died from wls is insane to all of us! Point is, the lady is a crack pipe!

Sorry, I have to agree with RJ here. For your Dr to say that you will not die from ANY surgery is ridiculous and irresponsible. If my Dr were to say that to me, then I would love to see his reaction when I refused to sign the consent forms releasing him and the hospital if "anything should happen".

There was an article in CNN today about someone who they are ready to pull the plug on after having a routine tonsillectomy. I recall a fire fighter who died from having surgery on his wrist a few years ago. People do die from routine procedures all the time. For the doctor to say you will not die from this surgery is just plain wrong. And I am talking about you, not the population as a whole. Your statement wasn't untrue ... we believe your doctor told you this. We just believe it is untrue that it is possible to guarantee a person will wake up from ANY surgery, not just VSG.

And I don't know if the blogger is a crack pipe, but I will put her in the bucket of a crack pot, anyday. (I know, auto-correct makes me crazy, too)

http://www.cnn.com/2013/12/19/health/routine-surgery-complications/index.html?hpt=hp_t3

Edited December 19, 201312 yr by PdxMan

and its not like the people having this surgery are in good health. most of us have co-morbitities. they are called this because they are serious conditions, not annoyances. my surgeon was very clear at orientation... the heavier you are, the more co-morbitities, the higher the risk of complications or death. he shoots straight from the hip and didnt sugar coat anything.