I'd like to hear from some low BMI patients that had their LB done in Mexico. I am considering Dr. Oritz in Tiajuana and want to hear from others who have went to him. Any advice? Also, what do you do about fills? Do you have them done locally or do you go to Mexico for fills? I am concerned about the costs associated with fills following the surgery.

I didn't get banded with Dr. Ortiz, but I did get banded in Mexico. My BMI at the time was 31. I have gone back to Mexico 2x for fills as it is so expensive to do so here in Wisconsin - it was actually cheaper to fly back there and I can do it and come back in the same day. All I pay for is the airfare - the doctor's office has someone pick me up at the airport and the fills are free.

cmayes, I was banded by dr ortiz 3/25 and use fill centers usa as my aftercare provider, had my 1st fill on may 1st and am having my second one here on thursday, there are 30 locations throughout the country so maybe there is one by you, I go that route since it is far cheaper than a flight and boarding for my dogs to return to Mexico, also dr o is on the board of directors of fill centers as he is one of the founders of it, you could also try private practioners but your success with getting accepted by one varies significantly, just have your post care plan in place before you have surgery. Since you asked my BMI was like 34.5 when I started and is now 30.5, getting down there slowly but surely, the biggest thing to remember is the less to lose the slower it goes.

good luck, you'll have a great exp with dr. o, my whole trip was smooth sailing.

I had my surgery with Dr. Ortiz. I actually posted my whole story on his website blog thingy. It was a pretty smooth surgery. I was back at work Monday and didn't even need any of the pain meds. Truly the worst part is the gas!! That came and went for about two weeks. I was just back in the office on Saturday for a check up and they are so nice. Claudia knows my son and asks to see him every time we come in. She is great!

My experience was great. I was banded on May 6th, so today is 1 week post OP. I would highly recomend Dr. Ortiz and his staff.

I am going to get my fills in Mexico by Dr. Otiz office. When I was getting my band, there was a guy that had flown in to get his port replaced. He went to a local Doctor in TN, and they punctured his port. I am sure that it is rare, but its not worth the risk. Also Dr. Ortiz office does the fill under X-RAY, so they put in as much as you need, not the trial and error BS fill centers use, by doing .5 -1 CC at a time and tell you to come back in 4 weeks and charge you again.

The fill is free, but there are associated costs. $100 X-RAY, plus the cost of the Hotel and transportation(flight+transport to/from airport). But in the end its worth it, and its nice to have it filled in your own Drs. office so they can check you out while you are there.

I went to Dr. Ortiz also. I am almost 6 months since my surgery and I feel great. My experience was great and post op recovery went almost too well, I didn't even think I had a band and my stoma wasn't swollen or anything. I didn't need pain meds either. While I was still at the clinic, one of the nice nursing assistants came by and patted my back and rubbed it to help with the gas pain. That pain subsided rather fast. The day after my surgery when I checked into the hotel, I got a cab and went shopping for about 2 hours. I felt great! I feel even better now as I am only 20 lbs from my goal weight....yea BABY! I drive to TJ for fills as I am only 2 hrs away. I have only had 2 fills and that is all I have needed. This second fill is still kind of tight. I forsee maybe one more fill in my future and that will probably be when I am closer to my goal weight just for maintenance. We may be moving to Chicago soon so I will probably start using fill center for aftercare at that point. Good luck to you!

I highly recommend dr arturo rodriguez in monterrey, Mexico. he did a beautiful job on me and i only had twenty pounds to lose. you have to look with a magnifine glass to see my scars and my surgery was only eight and a half months ago. visit his website at thebariatric.com

good luck

anya

I also went to Dr. Ortiz in TJ. I was very pleased with my experience too. I was banded on May 8th and will be going for my first fill July 3rd in Washington. I have lost 15 lbs so far and am wanting to lose more. It is a healthy half a pound to one pound a week weight loss at this point. AudricIan, your weight loss is an inspiration. Keep up the good work and you will be a size 7 before you know it. I would love to be a 7. Take care all : )

My BMI was 37.5, and I went to Dr. Ortiz. I was very pleased with the experience. My husband and daughter have also been banded by Dr. Ortiz, but they had higher BMI's than I did.

My story starts out the same as AudricIan's and I hope it keeps unfolding just as nicely!

I was banded by Dr. Ortiz on 6/16/08 (just last week) Starting BMI 31.5. The surgery went well and the staff was great.

I had (and have) a bit more pain, but manageable with ibuprofen. I spent the whole day here at the office today and I feel just fine.

I'm in Phoenix. I'll go back to Dr. Ortiz for at least the first fill and this board has been more than helpful to find local providers who will do fills for patients banded in Mexico. Gas prices being what they are, it will still be cheaper to fly to San Diego than drive it.

No regrets, I just wish I were thru the three weeks of liquids already!

PS) Dr Kuri, also in Tijuana wouldn't accept me at a BMI under 35. Dr. Ortiz didn't have those restrictions.

FWIW, once True Results and Dr. Simpson (both in Phoenix) knew I was self pay, they didn't have BMI or co-morbidity restrictions.

Hi I'm Vickie

I have a BMI of 34 so I get ragged on:cursing: and have had lots of doors slammed in my face. I have arthritis and the pain in my back can be intense so this is why the weight has got to go. I will have my surgery Dec. 9th 2009 with Dr. Lopez Corvala in Tijuana. I pay. I hope I do well and glad to hear other outcomes from low bmi's and Mexico have come out healthy.:thumbup:

I went to Dr. Lopez-Corvala in january 21 2008. My BMI about 32. The Doctors in northern Calif. would not even let me make an appoitment. I knew I would be self pay so why not go to Mexico. It was a wonderful experiance no problems. I went back to Dr. Corvala for my first 2 fills now I have found Dr. McKeen in San Jose for fills and follow up. Dr. Mc Keen is very responsive and calls to check on me.

I went to Dr. Lopez-Corvala in january 21 2008. My BMI about 32. The Doctors in northern Calif. would not even let me make an appoitment. I knew I would be self pay so why not go to Mexico. It was a wonderful experiance no problems. I went back to Dr. Corvala for my first 2 fills now I have found Dr. McKeen in San Jose for fills and follow up. Dr. Mc Keen is very responsive and calls to check on me.

Dear Sandy Beach:

Thanks for the positive feedback concerning Mexico and Dr. Corvala. I will use your comments as ammunition for my relatives who are all freaked out about this. I hope my experience there goes as well as yours did. I think I found a doctor in Anchorage that will do my fills but I don't know how much yet (Dr. Jones)

Thanks again

Vickie

I don't want to be a Debbie downer on your LB journey, but thought that I'd share my updates with you. On this site you hear SO many good things and only a couple negatives that I chose to only hear the good. I never for one second believed that within a year out I wouldn't be at my dream weight. Let me tell ya, I am now nearly at my pre-surgery weight. I had good restriction and ate nearly 1/3 of what I ate pre surgery and lost about 15lbs over a year. They were hard to lose too. Without excercise the weight did NOT budge. I recently became really inflamed and had to have a complete unfill. All of my cravings and ability to eat a lot returned 100%. The insane compulsion for sweets came back and now that I could eat again I quickly gained back all I had lost. I am really struggling to take the weight off. So in my case, my family knows that even WLS can't make my fat @ss lose weight. This has been absolutely humiliating!!!

P.S. Everyone keeps saying it's your diet, you don't excercise, etc, etc. I could only eat BARELY 3/4 of a Weight Watchers dinner with my fill, I chase after my son, plan weekend outdoor adventures for excercise and still nothing. The advice I keep hearing is to basically go on an Atkins style diet. I could have done that without spending $8,500! I got the LB so that I could reduce my portion sizes to get healthy, not go back on Atkins. The band has been a godsend to so many and I truely hope this is the case for you.

I'm going to Dr. Ortiz March 13th. I'm hoping to fly home on the 14th. Do-able? I would also like to keep getting my fills theres since they xray. Do they really give you a bigger fill since they are watching it? & last question: The border, how big a pain is that?