Well, I sure screwed up. I did a ton of research on the procedure but neglected to research a local aftercare facility or doctor. Had surgery in Mexico on Thursday and now have a slight problem with port incision that needs some attention. Does anyone know of a doctor in Michigan (preferrably Grand Rapids or Holland) that will perform aftercare on someone who had the surgery done in Mexico? Thank you

Chris

Chris what is going on with the incision? Have you tried talking to your Doc in Mexico to at least get some kind of input on what he thinks??? Hopefully It is not infected and it is healing at a different pace than the rest..

There are quite a few On LBT that can give you some info on Your Port Incision but of course you would also follow up with Your PCP can you do that??

You might try Doctor Pleatman in Detroit area. He is taking patients on a case by case basis.

www.laparoscopy.com/pleatman

Tony

Lined up local after care is an absolute must and needs to be included in anyone's research when going out of country. This issue pops up time and time again. I had an aftercare doc lined up in my state but I also had a port question when it was draining like crazy and was able to get wonderful care and treatment from my family practitioner. He/she should always be your first line of defense in your medical treatment. I'm my docs only banded patient but he knows enough about wounds and medicine that he easily treated and healed my port issues. Best wishes, Teresa

Hi Chris,

I'm in the Hastings/Kazoo area. I had Dr. Kuri do my surgery and did the same thing you did. I have had great luck with Dr. Pleatman, he's located in Bloomfield hills. I emailed him and he got back to me really fast. I believe he does his own emails and not someone else in his office.

If for some reason he wont take you on as a patient, you could try Dr. Alan Saben/Saber (not sure which spelling it it) he's in Kalamazoo and he may take you on as a patient.

I hope you get things taken care of ASAP.

Thank you everyone - I will try the doctors listed below for aftercare. I did speak to the doctor in Mexico and he said it is probably ok but to have someone look at it to make sure it wasn't infected. It started leaking a little watery blood 6 days after surgery and it stings, but it's not tender to touch. I went to an urgent care place last night, got yelled at for not having an aftercare doctor, and he prescribed an antibotic. The nurse looked at it and said it didn't look infected to her. The stinging bothers me the most.

Thanks again,

Chris

You can also email Don Mills at Inamed and ask him for a list of Inamed surgeons in your area. You will have to call all of them to see if any of them will take patiens banded in Mexico.

Don.Mills@inamed.com is his email address, he will be glad to help you.

I think I sent you a long post about my leaking wound. Please get back to us and tell us if it stopped leaking.

Thank you everyone for your responses. I did email Dr. Ortiz and am waiting for a response. The leakage isn't bad now but the burning/stinging is very bad. I'm wondering if perhaps the tubing is twisted or kinked as it feels like something is pulling the port from the inside. I'm ok when I sit down but as soon as I stand I almost double over. It eases if I take my left hand and hold up the lower part of my belly, and if I can stand it, stay upright for awhile and then the stinging goes away. Freaked myself out last night thinking I will have to go back to Mexico and have some type of surgery again. This morning I woke up feeling better but this afternoon it is back again big time. I finally got in touch with Dr. Pleatman's office and have appt set up for Tuesday. Karen at the doctor's office suggested I email him as well to see if he wants me to come to the hospital there. I think his office is about 2 hours away from me so not so bad.

I'll keep you posted - thanks again for all of your help

Chris

Chris, this doesn't sound normal to me at all. Get on the horn with Ortiz and don't wait for an e-mail response since he might not get back to his desk today. He's really good about taking calls, so call him right away, okay?

He's really good about taking calls, so call him right away, okay?

Yes call him or Dr. Martinez, both answer their cell phones. He will most likely reply to your email tonight, he does all of his email replies in the evenings but why wait until tonight when you can speak to him directly now by calling his cell phone, if you need the numbers to both him or Dr. Martinez's cell phones , PM me and I will send them to you.

Thank you everyone for your responses - I can't tell you how much it meant to me to have you there! I did talk with Dr. Ortiz last night - thank goodness! I swear I love that man He calmed me right down. The leaking is normal and has just about stopped. He also told me the sharp stinging pain is from the muscle they sew the port tubing to. He knew exactly what I was talking about, he's had a number of patients go through it and he knew how to treat it right away. He said the muscle is just trying to get used to a foreign object and will eventually become similar to callused. Take advil, heating pad and slowly do little stretching exercises and it will be fine. I was so freaked out! I asked if he was sure the port wasn't separating from my skin (amazing what our imaginations do isn't it?). He said absolutely he was sure! So I did what he said and what do you know, I am feeling much better! Once I knew it wasn't life threatening ( ) I was able to relax a little and do what he said. It made perfect sense. Very little stinging now, with just a little tightness. Thank heaven for a doctor like Dr. Ortiz and a support group like this one!

Chris

Iam so glad you were able to speak directly to Dr. Ortiz and he was able to put your mind at ease. It is great to hear that you are doing much better today and you are right, our minds and imaginations can make us think the worst. I read on your other post that you were also to get aftercare with Dr. Pleatman...good for you that has got to make you feel better too!

Thank heaven for a doctor like Dr. Ortiz and a support group like this one!

I agree with you on both comments.

I remember when my port started gushing. It was awful and easy to seem life threatening. I was inn-sitting at the time and had just served a table full of people breakfast. I looked down and my entire front was soaked. Thank God I had an apron on but I still felt terrified about it. I went and saw my primary doc and he fixed me all up. Glad your feeling better, Teresa

Great for you Chris that you found Peace of mind and your incisions are ok..

Is the leaking a problem a lot of people have? I am a newbie here so, please be patient if some of my questions seem juvenile!!