Re: Taking next step and questions: T2 Diabetes

[Guest guest]

I had diabetes before the surgery. It is now totally under control

since the 2nd week post-op. I've been off glucophage since surgery.

That was my main reason for surgery. Below is some info I used in my

request for surgery letter. It's some studies I researched from the

pubMed database. It's very interesting.....

<exerpts from my letter of medical necessity>

I am diabetic. In addition to being a morbid and lethal disease,

diabetes has been shown to be very expensive to treat. Rubin et. al.

in a study in 1992 showed that yearly health care expenditures for

confirmed diabetics ($11,157) were more than four times greater than

for nondiabetics. In 1992, diabetics constituted 4.5% of the U.S.

population but accounted for 14.6% of total U.S. health care

expenditures ($105 billion). Confirmed diabetics constituted 3.1% of

the U.S. population but accounted for 11.9% of total U.S. health care

expenditures ($85 billion). Health care expenditures for people with

diabetes constituted about one in seven health care dollars spent in

1992. (Diabetes in America, 2nd Edition, The National Institutes of

Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, 1995, NIH publication

number 95-1468.) Health care insurers should take note of these

findings. Gastric Bypass has been shown to cure diabetes and thus it

is cost effective for insurers to pay for surgery to cure diabetes

and prevent its complications. Nearly 80 percent of patients with

NIDDM are obese.

About 90% of type II diabetics are overweight. Among morbidly obese

patients undergoing weight loss surgery there is an approximately 80-

98% cure of their diabetes mellitus. Bariatric surgery offers a

highly successful way of curing or ameliorating diabetes mellitus.

References:

Greenway SE, Greenway FL 3rd, Klein S.

Effects of obesity surgery on non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus.

Department of Surgery, Harbor-University of California, Los Angeles

Medical Center, Torrance, CA 90509, USA.

Arch Surg. 2002 Oct;137(10):1109-17.

Pories WJ, Swanson MS, Mac KG, Long SB, PG, Brown BM,

Barakat HA, deRamon RA, Israel G, Dolezal JM, et al.

Who would have thought it? An operation proves to be the most

effective therapy for adult-onset diabetes mellitus.

Department of Surgery, School of Medicine, East Carolina University,

Greenville, North Carolina, USA.

Ann Surg. 1995 Sep;222(3):339-50; discussion 350-2.

Polyzogopoulou EV, Kalfarentzos F, Vagenakis AG, andrides TK.

Restoration of euglycemia and normal acute insulin response to

glucose in obese subjects with type 2 diabetes following bariatric

surgery.

Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Endocrinology,

University Hospital, University of Patras Medical School, Rion,

Patras 26500, Greece

Diabetes. 2003 May;52(5):1098-103

Karayiannakis AJ, Syrigos KN, Zbar A, Makri GG, Athanasiadis L,

iou D, Bastounis EA.

The effect of vertical banded gastroplasty on glucose-induced beta-

endorphin response.

First Department of Internal Medicine, University of Athens, Athens,

Greece.

J Surg Res. 1998 Dec;80(2):123-8.

As found on PubMed http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?

db=PubMed

[Guest guest]

Thanks ,

That's great information. When did you have your surgery and what insurance

do you have?

glo

>

>Reply-To: Gastric_Bypass_Family

>To: Gastric_Bypass_Family

>Subject: Re: Taking next step and questions: T2

>Diabetes

>Date: Fri, 23 Jul 2004 00:47:25 -0000

>

[Guest guest]

> That's great information. When did you have your surgery and what

insurance

> do you have?

I had my surgery on 2/16/04 and I had HMO Colorado (BC/BS) which

stopped covering the surgery on 4/1/04. I switched to them in

January (from Cigna) because they said they would still be covering

the surgery. Well, lo and behold come the new year the company line

changed and I only had 3 months to get my surgery approved and done.

Luckily I had done most of my research and prep the year before and

was able to get quick approval.

I hope my information helps someone else.

F