I am new here and I am trying to decide between SIPS and DS. I am wondering how those of you who have had the SIPS done are doing? How far out, how much you’ve lost, potty, and gas, vitamin care....

i had DS in April along with gall bladder removal and hiatal hernia repair. lost a lot so far like 90 lbs or so. had a hard time at beginning but so does everyone. its part of it. Gas , potty time , vitamins... protein, ... you just have to follow the rules and do what they tell you as best you can... after 3rd month I felt great!!! now im almost 6 months out and eat very little take my vitamins, exercise a little, eat the right foods. Its great!! the best thing I ever did in my life! Still losing too! I think The surgeon said you keep losing weight with DS for 18 months. go for it and do it!! you wont regret it. Nothing is easy so yeah its hard at first but you wont regret it.

Edited September 24, 20187 yr by Glamgirl

I'm Sleeve to Sips revision, little more than 4 months out. I honestly didn't do enough research on Full DS before going with SIpS...I just believed my Dr, who called SIPS the "bazooka" of WL surgery while having the least side effects. Sounded pretty good so I went for it.

There are some SIPS haters on internet forums who say that SIPS is still experimental and unproven. Also, if you dig you'll find a single study that kinda' sorta' implies that SIPS becomes less effective vs DS after a year, (but I've also read a pretty compelling refutation of that same article so..... who really knows with anything you find on internet? Something to ask your surgeon about, I suppose.)

I can report that all that my post op experiences seem to match pretty well with the stories I read full from "full DS'ers". I can't tell the difference. My weight loss has been slow but consistent. Keep in mind that I'm a revision, and revisions are never as fast\effective as "virgin" procedures, so I'm reasonably happy.

My #1 piece of advice comes in the form of a warning: These procedures work, but there's a cost. It's almost Faustian......There's no such thing as something for nothing. There have been multiple occasions where I questioned my decision and even times I wished I hadn't done it. For one, my restroom visits will never be the same, which is embarrassing and uncomfortable. Also, I feel either nauseous or constipated almost constantly, which has significantly affected my sex drive.... It's hard to feel romantic when I'm constantly farting and my stomach is twisted in knots. ...there's a cost. Be prepared

That’s what I’m worried about I want to be thin but at what cost? I do t have any comorbilities, I’m just fat! 265 right highest 310 after sleeve I got down to 220. I do t really want to be farting and having runny crap for the rest of my life to be thin and have to take 20 vitamins a day, and have brital bones at 50 years old.... but I’m an eater... I eat when I’m Depressed.... and when I look in the mirror I dot. Like what I see... what to do...

Yup. Agreed with your concerns. (NOTE: You take much fewer vitamins with SIPS than DS, so +1 in SIPS column for that.)

I didn't write what I wrote to scare you off. I just want don't want anyone headed down the primrose path only to feel tricked or betrayed later. Just know what you're trading.

That being said.....despite a few rough moments for me, I'm glad I got the SIPS and would do it again. Let's face it, being fat sucks, and has plenty of embarrassments, inconveniences and even physical pain on it's own (ex: bending over to tie a shoe) . Those thing are behind me and good riddance.

Also note that many of the bathroom issues can be curbed or at least significantly lessened simply by being careful with carbs. THe issues I've had are mostly my own, lazy, fault.

Hi,

I had a revision from Lap-band to SIPS in February 2018. So far I've lost nearly 97lbs. I did have a bit of a rough start, but probably my own doing. The surgery was fine, minimal pain, was able to go home in two days. However, before the surgery I was constipated, took some stool softeners, but didn't get any relief. Although I was home and not having complications from the surgery, I still had constipation and it was getting worse although I was only on liquids. So I took some magnesium citrate, and finally got relief, but then came my problems!

I couldn't keep anything down. I started throwing up constantly and it was green. I literally was vomiting bile. I was readmitted to the hospital, and turned out I had an intestinal blockage. They tried "starving" it out for a week. I started to feel okay, not great, but okay. Was released, and 24 hours I was re-admitted and about 12 hours from then, I had to have invasive surgery. I ended up on feeding tubes for three weeks, which took my total hospital stay to a solid month!

Putting all of that drama aside, because I do feel like I did it to myself, I am pleased that I had the surgery. I have no regrets. Once I got used to what foods could trigger the gas and bathroom issues, I was able to bring it under much better control. No doubt, the bathroom issue is really something that you have to work on to manage your day in peace, but it's doable.

Although, I'm now slightly under 200lbs, I carry weight well, and don't look like a nearly 200lb woman. If I didn't lose another pound, I would be satisfied, so anything I lose from this point forward is gravy to me. I'm wearing 16 top and 14 bottoms, down from 24Ws. I know for some, that a size 16 or even 14 is still big, but I feel like a runway model!!!! :-)

@Kat11929 I had the traditional full DS in June 2017 and have lost 80 pounds. I started with a BMI of 40 and have decreased it to a low 26. Another three pounds and I'll have a BMI of 25. Because of my lower starting BMI, my doctor made my common channel a little longer than most normal DS patients. I wear a size 8 pants and medium top. I only take 2 chewable calciums, two ADEK vitamins, and one B12 a day. I don't feel that's unreasonable and my blood levels are excellent. I have opted to include an additional vitamin D3 because we don't get a whole lot of sun year round here in Utah due to the inversion. I've never had a problem with constipation. I do get gas in the evening sometimes if I eat the wrong things. My health has improved significantly. While I didn't have any co-morbidities except being overweight, my quality of life is much improved. As Discostu stated, tying my shoes used to be a breath holding experience, and now it's no big deal. I'm no longer embarrassed to have my picture taken, which is huge for me. My double chin is gone, something that has haunted me for the past 20 years. Would I have the DS surgery again? In a heartbeat.

I originally wanted the traditional ds, but my (very highly recommended) local doctor is only performing SIPS at the moment, except in a few cases. I actually go in for surgery in the morning!

In my research, SIPS held up pretty well to traditional DS, and I am now hoping and praying for the best! I have managed to lose quite a bit of weight while waiting for insurance approval, so hope that will help my overall outcome as well.

For me, the ability to doctor locally was a huge piece of the picture, as I still have several children at home.

On 9/29/2018 at 5:35 AM, Strivingforbetter said:

@Kat11929 I had the traditional full DS in June 2017 and have lost 80 pounds. I started with a BMI of 40 and have decreased it to a low 26. Another three pounds and I'll have a BMI of 25. Because of my lower starting BMI, my doctor made my common channel a little longer than most normal DS patients. I wear a size 8 pants and medium top. I only take 2 chewable calciums, two ADEK Vitamins, and one B12 a day. I don't feel that's unreasonable and my blood levels are excellent. I have opted to include an additional Vitamin D3 because we don't get a whole lot of sun year round here in Utah due to the inversion. I've never had a problem with constipation. I do get gas in the evening sometimes if I eat the wrong things. My health has improved significantly. While I didn't have any co-morbidities except being overweight, my quality of life is much improved. As Discostu stated, tying my shoes used to be a breath holding experience, and now it's no big deal. I'm no longer embarrassed to have my picture taken, which is huge for me. My double chin is gone, something that has haunted me for the past 20 years. Would I have the DS surgery again? In a heartbeat.

On 9/29/2018 at 5:35 AM, Strivingforbetter said:

@Kat11929 I had the traditional full DS in June 2017 and have lost 80 pounds. I started with a BMI of 40 and have decreased it to a low 26. Another three pounds and I'll have a BMI of 25. Because of my lower starting BMI, my doctor made my common channel a little longer than most normal DS patients. I wear a size 8 pants and medium top. I only take 2 chewable calciums, two ADEK Vitamins, and one B12 a day. I don't feel that's unreasonable and my blood levels are excellent. I have opted to include an additional Vitamin D3 because we don't get a whole lot of sun year round here in Utah due to the inversion. I've never had a problem with constipation. I do get gas in the evening sometimes if I eat the wrong things. My health has improved significantly. While I didn't have any co-morbidities except being overweight, my quality of life is much improved. As Discostu stated, tying my shoes used to be a breath holding experience, and now it's no big deal. I'm no longer embarrassed to have my picture taken, which is huge for me. My double chin is gone, something that has haunted me for the past 20 years. Would I have the DS surgery again? In a heartbeat.

Wow great to hear! My BMI IS around 40-41. I was wondering about the common channel length, what was yours? I had another friend on a different site have his a little longer as well. So I might ask about that.

21 hours ago, Kat11929 said:

Wow great to hear! My BMI IS around 40-41. I was wondering about the common channel length, what was yours? I had another friend on a different site have his a little longer as well. So I might ask about that.

My common channel is 150 cm. A traditional one is usually 100 cm. I would recommend going with 100 cm because you'll lose weight faster and your body will find its lower set point closer to your goal. I worried I would lose too much weight, but now I wish I didn't have the extra length in my channel so my set point was lower.

Edited October 2, 20187 yr by Strivingforbetter

Interesting. My common channel is 280cm. According to my surgeon, he would normally go 250cm for higher BMI than I started with (another way getting a sleeve first screwed me! hahaha) . So the obvious questions is, "why is Strivingforbetter's 'typical' number a full 100cm different than mine?" That seems like a huge discrepancy.

I imagine it's probably something to do with traditional DS vs SIPs; SIPS are 100cm longer in general? Also, it's possible it has something to do with male vs female, but that seems less likely....

Wow that seems long! But I am learning a lot right now so I see both side to each procedure. I have 2 other friends that have a regular DS one has a common Handel length of 80cm and the other I believe is around 80cm as well not to sure as she just had surgery 2 days ago!? so how far out are you and how is everything going?

I've been using this post to "blog" my "journey."

As far as how it's going, "Slow but steady"

@@disco stu 250 cm seems way too long. I confirmed with my surgeon at my one year appt that mine was 150 cm. Anything shorter seems like you wouldn't have the malabsorption component. That's interesting. So are you saying instead of the DS, what you got was just the sleeve?

I had the SIPS procedure (a.k.a.single-anastomosis duodenal switch), which is the new kid on the block. Similar to DS, but a simpler procedure which - in theory - means less risk of complications, and fewer side effects. For instance, because the channel is in the 250-300cm range, there are fewer vitamin deficiency issues than traditional DS. Quote:

• Patients report experiencing significantly less malabsorptive symptoms compared to a standard duodenal switch because the common channel length is almost twice that of a standard DS.

But as noted in my earlier post, there are people on forums who will say SIPS is still "experimental" or at the very least, has not been around long enough to support the above claims.

The single-anastomosis duodenal switch, also called stomach intestinal pylorus sparing surgery (SIPS), or the single loop DS, is very similar to the standard duodenal switchoperation, except that the small intestine is only transected at one point instead of two. With this operation, the majority of the most stretchable portion of the stomach is permanently removed (as in a sleeve gastrectomy) but basic stomach function remains the same. In addition, roughly half of the upper small intestine is bypassed, resulting in a moderate decrease in calorie absorption. Weight loss is achieved both through restriction of food consumption and malabsorption, which results in very good long-term weight loss maintenance.

http://www.centerforweightlosssurgery.com/service/weight-loss-surgery/single-anastomosis-duodenal-switch