Guest guest Posted August 20, 2001 Report Share Posted August 20, 2001 > Thanks et al. I have had gallbladder attacks in the past while > dieting. Testing did show the presence of small stones. I have a consult > with Dr. Gagner's colleague, Dr. Herron, and I hope he removes > gallbladders during surgery as I know mine will act up upon any > significant weight loss. I read that some physicians prefer to prescribe > bile salts for six months post-surgery. What was your experience? > > > Pre-op Dr. s of Scranton,PA. removes the Gallbladder in all his DS patients......He told me " I, do it because if you ever have a problem and anyone other than a bariatric surgeon were to operate they might not understand the work that I did " .....Dr. s is a good surgeon IMHO. Anyone in the New York area that needs the surgery before losing insurance due to a job change would do well to contact him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 20, 2001 Report Share Posted August 20, 2001 > Thanks et al. I have had gallbladder attacks in the past while > dieting. Testing did show the presence of small stones. I have a consult > with Dr. Gagner's colleague, Dr. Herron, and I hope he removes > gallbladders during surgery as I know mine will act up upon any > significant weight loss. I read that some physicians prefer to prescribe > bile salts for six months post-surgery. What was your experience? > > > Pre-op Dr. s of Scranton,PA. removes the Gallbladder in all his DS patients......He told me " I, do it because if you ever have a problem and anyone other than a bariatric surgeon were to operate they might not understand the work that I did " .....Dr. s is a good surgeon IMHO. Anyone in the New York area that needs the surgery before losing insurance due to a job change would do well to contact him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 21, 2001 Report Share Posted August 21, 2001 In a message dated 8/20/01 11:09:18 PM, duodenalswitch writes: << Thanks et al. I have had gallbladder attacks in the past while dieting. Testing did show the presence of small stones. I have a consult with Dr. Gagner's colleague, Dr. Herron, and I hope he removes gallbladders during surgery as I know mine will act up upon any significant weight loss. I read that some physicians prefer to prescribe bile salts for six months post-surgery. What was your experience? >> Well, I know that the guys at Mt. Sinai do not routinely remove the gallbladder. I'm not sure how anamant Dr. Herron is about this but I practically had to beg Dr. Gagner. Actually, I took films of my ultrasound to my consult. I asked that he take the gallbladder out due to pains I'd been having and the huge stones. He took a look and said he'd take it out. BUT, he called down while I was on the operating table to ask me if I 'really, really' wanted it out! I had to strongly insist and was so happy they did during the surgery. I haven't been on bile salts so I don't know how successful they are, etc. I know that *some* people may still need the gallbladder out at a later date (6 mo-1 year after surgery) but many also don't have problems. I think it depends on whether the stones have been bothering you, etc. If the gallbladder is diseased, etc. of course it will be removed. My stones were huge (1 cm) and it was a great relief to have them out. I think the potential problem with multiple small stones is that they can be stuck in the biliary duct (usually an exploratory procedure - I forgot the name - is performed to rule this out) and/or they can get stuck in the body when the gallbladder is being removed. This certainly isn't a reason for someone to not take a gallbladder out by any means. If there aren't problems, though, it may seem like more of a risk than to leave it alone. I would definately talk with Dr. Herron about this. If you have past test results/films, etc., bring those too. He'll be able to see the gallbladder's condition, etc. immediately. all the best, lap ds with gallbladder removal January 25, 2001 Dr. Gagner/Mt. Sinai/NYC pre-op: 307 lbs/bmi 45 now: 227 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 21, 2001 Report Share Posted August 21, 2001 In a message dated 8/20/01 11:09:18 PM, duodenalswitch writes: << Thanks et al. I have had gallbladder attacks in the past while dieting. Testing did show the presence of small stones. I have a consult with Dr. Gagner's colleague, Dr. Herron, and I hope he removes gallbladders during surgery as I know mine will act up upon any significant weight loss. I read that some physicians prefer to prescribe bile salts for six months post-surgery. What was your experience? >> Well, I know that the guys at Mt. Sinai do not routinely remove the gallbladder. I'm not sure how anamant Dr. Herron is about this but I practically had to beg Dr. Gagner. Actually, I took films of my ultrasound to my consult. I asked that he take the gallbladder out due to pains I'd been having and the huge stones. He took a look and said he'd take it out. BUT, he called down while I was on the operating table to ask me if I 'really, really' wanted it out! I had to strongly insist and was so happy they did during the surgery. I haven't been on bile salts so I don't know how successful they are, etc. I know that *some* people may still need the gallbladder out at a later date (6 mo-1 year after surgery) but many also don't have problems. I think it depends on whether the stones have been bothering you, etc. If the gallbladder is diseased, etc. of course it will be removed. My stones were huge (1 cm) and it was a great relief to have them out. I think the potential problem with multiple small stones is that they can be stuck in the biliary duct (usually an exploratory procedure - I forgot the name - is performed to rule this out) and/or they can get stuck in the body when the gallbladder is being removed. This certainly isn't a reason for someone to not take a gallbladder out by any means. If there aren't problems, though, it may seem like more of a risk than to leave it alone. I would definately talk with Dr. Herron about this. If you have past test results/films, etc., bring those too. He'll be able to see the gallbladder's condition, etc. immediately. all the best, lap ds with gallbladder removal January 25, 2001 Dr. Gagner/Mt. Sinai/NYC pre-op: 307 lbs/bmi 45 now: 227 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 21, 2001 Report Share Posted August 21, 2001 Somebody wrote eariler about a surgeon who removes the gallbladder and appendix during DS routinely because he (the surgeon) wants to be able to rule them out as a cause of post-op pain. I think that is very wise! As a pre-op patient who has no gallbladder, I can tell you (if you don't already know): the pain is excruciating. It comes from the duct, which is only a few mm wide, trying to squeeze out the stone. Depending on the state of your gallbladder, it could happen once every few years or daily. Mine started happening about once every two months, then every month, every week, then daily. It went on for six months before I realized it wasn't food poisoning or plain-old constipation (my bad). If I'd had a DS already, I probably would have been convinced that it was a blockage, because that is exactly what it felt like! (BTW, prior to having the attacks, I was on Actigall...a lot of help that did me.) The gallbladder aids in digesting fats, so they recommend (do not demand) a low-fat diet after having it removed, but when do they NOT recommend that? There are probably exceptions in some people, but generally you don't need it. Same goes for the appendix. Take my gallbladder and appendix, please!!! So...does this mean I save my insurance company money because they don't have to pay for the gallbladder removal? HAHA!! Not that they didn't already pay for it... -M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 21, 2001 Report Share Posted August 21, 2001 Somebody wrote eariler about a surgeon who removes the gallbladder and appendix during DS routinely because he (the surgeon) wants to be able to rule them out as a cause of post-op pain. I think that is very wise! As a pre-op patient who has no gallbladder, I can tell you (if you don't already know): the pain is excruciating. It comes from the duct, which is only a few mm wide, trying to squeeze out the stone. Depending on the state of your gallbladder, it could happen once every few years or daily. Mine started happening about once every two months, then every month, every week, then daily. It went on for six months before I realized it wasn't food poisoning or plain-old constipation (my bad). If I'd had a DS already, I probably would have been convinced that it was a blockage, because that is exactly what it felt like! (BTW, prior to having the attacks, I was on Actigall...a lot of help that did me.) The gallbladder aids in digesting fats, so they recommend (do not demand) a low-fat diet after having it removed, but when do they NOT recommend that? There are probably exceptions in some people, but generally you don't need it. Same goes for the appendix. Take my gallbladder and appendix, please!!! So...does this mean I save my insurance company money because they don't have to pay for the gallbladder removal? HAHA!! Not that they didn't already pay for it... -M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 22, 2001 Report Share Posted August 22, 2001 Hello This is Tami, I am pre-op my surgery date is Oct. 2,2001. My Dr is Dr. Rabkin,in San Francisco he removes the gall bladder, appendix, and does a liver biopsy all at the same time. He explained to me the reason for this is because the rapid weight loss can cause either an appendicitis or Gall Bladder attacks, which could result in other surgeries thus more possible complications. Dr. Rabkin has an impecable reputation; and I actually can't wait to go under the knife. LOL Is this wierd or not. Tami Kopp --- mariak415@... wrote: > Somebody wrote eariler about a surgeon who removes > the > gallbladder and appendix during DS routinely because > he (the > surgeon) wants to be able to rule them out as a > cause of post-op > pain. I think that is very wise! > > As a pre-op patient who has no gallbladder, I can > tell you (if you > don't already know): the pain is excruciating. It > comes from the > duct, which is only a few mm wide, trying to squeeze > out the > stone. Depending on the state of your gallbladder, > it could > happen once every few years or daily. Mine started > happening > about once every two months, then every month, every > week, > then daily. It went on for six months before I > realized it wasn't > food poisoning or plain-old constipation (my bad). > If I'd had a DS > already, I probably would have been convinced that > it was a > blockage, because that is exactly what it felt like! > (BTW, prior to > having the attacks, I was on Actigall...a lot of > help that did me.) > > The gallbladder aids in digesting fats, so they > recommend (do > not demand) a low-fat diet after having it removed, > but when do > they NOT recommend that? There are probably > exceptions in > some people, but generally you don't need it. Same > goes for the > appendix. Take my gallbladder and appendix, > please!!! > > So...does this mean I save my insurance company > money > because they don't have to pay for the gallbladder > removal? > HAHA!! Not that they didn't already pay for it... > > -M > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 22, 2001 Report Share Posted August 22, 2001 Hello This is Tami, I am pre-op my surgery date is Oct. 2,2001. My Dr is Dr. Rabkin,in San Francisco he removes the gall bladder, appendix, and does a liver biopsy all at the same time. He explained to me the reason for this is because the rapid weight loss can cause either an appendicitis or Gall Bladder attacks, which could result in other surgeries thus more possible complications. Dr. Rabkin has an impecable reputation; and I actually can't wait to go under the knife. LOL Is this wierd or not. Tami Kopp --- mariak415@... wrote: > Somebody wrote eariler about a surgeon who removes > the > gallbladder and appendix during DS routinely because > he (the > surgeon) wants to be able to rule them out as a > cause of post-op > pain. I think that is very wise! > > As a pre-op patient who has no gallbladder, I can > tell you (if you > don't already know): the pain is excruciating. It > comes from the > duct, which is only a few mm wide, trying to squeeze > out the > stone. Depending on the state of your gallbladder, > it could > happen once every few years or daily. Mine started > happening > about once every two months, then every month, every > week, > then daily. It went on for six months before I > realized it wasn't > food poisoning or plain-old constipation (my bad). > If I'd had a DS > already, I probably would have been convinced that > it was a > blockage, because that is exactly what it felt like! > (BTW, prior to > having the attacks, I was on Actigall...a lot of > help that did me.) > > The gallbladder aids in digesting fats, so they > recommend (do > not demand) a low-fat diet after having it removed, > but when do > they NOT recommend that? There are probably > exceptions in > some people, but generally you don't need it. Same > goes for the > appendix. Take my gallbladder and appendix, > please!!! > > So...does this mean I save my insurance company > money > because they don't have to pay for the gallbladder > removal? > HAHA!! Not that they didn't already pay for it... > > -M > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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