I'm sure this question has been asked a million times, but here it is......

For those that had the sleeve or the RNY, why did you choose the procedure you had? What decided one procedure for you over another?

8 minutes ago, toby585 said:

I'm sure this question has been asked a million times, but here it is.....

Yes it has. I'm sure you know the differences between the two and their pros and cons. From my perspective I chose a sleeve over rny because it had less complications, and was far less time on the table. Those were the only two reasons. RNY is a fine procedure and can be more beneficial in certain cases like those who suffer from GERD. On a side note, I have/had GERD and have had precisely one incident in the past almost 6 months, so it is not a definite that having GERD disqualifies you from the sleeve as many say. In my case it was what I was eating that was causing all the issues.

Hi, I chose the RNY!! For one thing I was told that it was "THE GOLD STANDARD" of WLS. Since then I see many getting great results with the SLEEVE. I had my RNY on July 2, 2013. I have maintained my 124# loss for 3 and 1/2 years. I did go below my goal weight but I did gain back 8#'s which was and is a good thing. I lost to 117#'s. I had some troubles with Strictures and had 5 ENDOSCOPES with 4 DIALATIONS. Not good but it was a easy fix. My hubby had the SLEEVE and in 1 year jhe has lost 135#'s. I am sure he could lose faster and lose more if his choices of food were different. When I started my journey one of the things that made up my mind was this, I felt like I had one shot and told myself GO BIG OR GO HOME!! I am totally happy with my choice of WLS. Good Luck on your Journey and keep us posted.

First of all, both the sleeve and the bypass are wonderful procedures with proven results.

I chose the sleeve gastrectomy because I wanted my pyloric valve to remain intact. I also didn't want the malabsorptive issues associated with the bypass.

Also, I spent 30 to 45 minutes on the operating table to be sleeved. It was a same-day surgery. I was home that evening. My recovery was uncomplicated. I lost 100 pounds, reached my goal weight, and have been pleased with the results.

Edited July 12, 20179 yr by Introversion

For me i went with the sleeve because it seemed like it was less restrictive, and the idea of completely rerouting your insides wasn't as appealing.

2 hours ago, Sherrie Scharbrough said:

Hi, I chose the RNY!! For one thing I was told that it was "THE GOLD STANDARD" of WLS. Since then I see many getting great results with the SLEEVE. I had my RNY on July 2, 2013. I have maintained my 124# loss for 3 and 1/2 years. I did go below my goal weight but I did gain back 8#'s which was and is a good thing. I lost to 117#'s. I had some troubles with Strictures and had 5 ENDOSCOPES with 4 DIALATIONS. Not good but it was a easy fix. My hubby had the SLEEVE and in 1 year jhe has lost 135#'s. I am sure he could lose faster and lose more if his choices of food were different. When I started my journey one of the things that made up my mind was this, I felt like I had one shot and told myself GO BIG OR GO HOME!! I am totally happy with my choice of WLS. Good Luck on your Journey and keep us posted.

I agree I only wanted to do the WLS once and the Bypass have a better long-term successful rate. Now I would say if I could do it again I would probably go with the DS. The rate is even better and I like the malabsorptive part of it.

You know I didn't have enough info on the DS. I just heard bad things about it. If it was like the woman I knew who had a business. She couldn't or didn't control her bowels. She wore WIND SONG perfume and let me tell you those 2 smells together were NOT appealing. I still don't know much about that surgery. I was told by my PCP before my WLS that I needed both restriction and malabsorption!!! I totally agree. One of the best things I have done for myself.

I didn't choose my spealist / surgeon chose the gastric sleeve for me as my bmi was high but not extream and he thought this was the best one for me I don't think we should be able to choose the surgeon should he knows what the outcome will be for you as they have done the surgerys many times it's what suits each individual

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I'm about 85% sure I'm going with RNY. My main reasons are 1. that my BMI is over 50, and while many surgeons still do VSG for patients like me (and my surgeon was willing to do it), my current understanding is that in terms of the literature RNY is preferred for us super-obese folks; and 2. due to my life circumstances I need to lose weight very quickly - RNY has a significant edge over VSG in terms of % weight lost at the 1-year mark. VSG mostly catches up by 2 years, though, so many, many people are also very successful even though it might be a bit slower.

Some lesser reasons, in no particular order... there is way more data on RNY particularly about complications and long-term success, just a result of it being around longer. With VSG you have about 1/3 risk of developing acid reflux or GERD. Also, you generally lose about 15-20 pounds less on average with VSG. (I want to emphasize it's an average. I believe the numbers I saw at 2 years were RNY 70-77% excess weight loss and VSG 68-70%. So even using averages, 70% is in range for both surgeries.) I have seen many posts of people getting revisions from VSG to RNY and as anesthesia is one of my greatest fears I have no interest in going under the knife again.

A majority of people on this forum are sleeve patients so there is a lot of good info out there, and IMO it's a fabulous surgery. If I woke up after surgery and my surgeon said she had to do VSG instead of RNY for x or y reason I would not be unhappy at all. But there are definite pros to RNY as well, which I've noticed are sometimes not discussed. So there ya go

I'm about 85% sure I'm going with RNY. My main reasons are 1. that my BMI is over 50, and while many surgeons still do VSG for patients like me (and my surgeon was willing to do it), my current understanding is that in terms of the literature RNY is preferred for us super-obese folks; and 2. due to my life circumstances I need to lose weight very quickly - RNY has a significant edge over VSG in terms of % weight lost at the 1-year mark. VSG mostly catches up by 2 years, though, so many, many people are also very successful even though it might be a bit slower.
Some lesser reasons, in no particular order... there is way more data on RNY particularly about complications and long-term success, just a result of it being around longer. With VSG you have about 1/3 risk of developing acid reflux or GERD. Also, you generally lose about 15-20 pounds less on average with VSG. (I want to emphasize it's an average. I believe the numbers I saw at 2 years were RNY 70-77% excess weight loss and VSG 68-70%. So even using averages, 70% is in range for both surgeries.) I have seen many posts of people getting revisions from VSG to RNY and as anesthesia is one of my greatest fears I have no interest in going under the knife again.
A majority of people on this forum are sleeve patients so there is a lot of good info out there, and IMO it's a fabulous surgery. If I woke up after surgery and my surgeon said she had to do VSG instead of RNY for x or y reason I would not be unhappy at all. But there are definite pros to RNY as well, which I've noticed are sometimes not discussed. So there ya go [emoji4]

Great summary, thank you! I suppose I should wait until I have my first appointments and see what the docs think would be best for me...

12 minutes ago, toby585 said:

Great summary, thank you! I suppose I should wait until I have my first appointments and see what the docs think would be best for me...

You're so welcome. Yeah, it would make your life super easy if your surgeon says, "Oh I think [X] would be best for you." Mine left it up to me and I'm like... uhhh..... LOL! Good luck!

First of all, both the sleeve and the bypass are wonderful procedures with proven results.
I chose the sleeve gastrectomy because I wanted my pyloric valve to remain intact. I also didn't want the malabsorptive issues associated with the bypass.

These were my primary reasons for choosing the sleeve as well. I wanted my pyloric valve to reduce the risk of food intolerances and dumping syndrome. I also did not want to have additional vitamin deficiency risk.

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@OutsideMatchInside you may want to add your story for perspective please.

I have had both and neither were really for weight loss, just to repair some things. i had the sleeve 5 1/2 years ago to move 2/3 of my stomach back down through my diaphragm without destroying my diaphragm. I have always had tons of acid reflux and that did not go away in fact it got severely worse in the past six months. My only option to finally get rid of this reflux once and for all was RNY. So I just had that on June 12. I am 4 1/2 weeks out now. Never had any pain or any nausea and am on soft foods for 12 more days before I go on regular food.

To me, the recovery for both is the same; at least it has been for me. The RNY has more restriction of course, but both surgeries require post op "learning how to eat again" food plans! I wish he would have done the RNY 5 1/2 years ago simply because of my acid reflux problem.

I have healthy intestines and I did not want them touched. You can live without a stomach in case of complications. You cannot live without intestines, not well and not for long.

Long term RNY is not better than the sleeve, and as there are more long term sleevers it seems the results are shifting towards the sleeve.

Ultimately as a young, active relatively healthy person. I did not want the long term maintenance issues that come with RNY or DS. I have another 40 or 50 years left and I wanted something low maintenance and simple. Which is why even though I considered WLS over the years I never had it because the Band and RNY just did not make sense to me.

Reading WLS forums for about a decade before I had surgery. I knew that the surgery did noy determine weight loss. The patient does. Ultimately you have to have some will power and self control or you can eat around anything. Self control even if you do not have it before surgery, you can learn it easily post-op by following the post-op diet closely.

Edited July 13, 20179 yr by OutsideMatchInside

2 hours ago, OutsideMatchInside said:

I have healthy intestines and I did not want them touched. You can live without a stomach in case of complications. You cannot live without intestines, not well and not for long.

<snip>

Disclaimer: I would never question anybody having whichever surgery they prefer! I'm so glad you had VSG & you are one of my favorite members to follow due to your success.

Can you elaborate on your comment about intestines? It's my understanding they do not remove or otherwise alter your intestines, beyond connecting them in a different manner to the new pouch. I do completely understand that VSG leaves the intestines totally intact and that was your concern, but I'm confused as to how someone would be "living without intestines" due to RNY.