Have you guys heard of this? New to me

[Guest guest]

Might help someone else if in the right area. I got this from the VSG board:

I am new here but need to share what I have learned that may hopefully help

others. I did my research and knew that the Gastric Sleeve procedure was what I

would have, fortunately my insurer recently approved the procedure so I was

eligible. What I didn't know at the time is that my surgeon was one of 2 in the

nation that would be utilizing a new technology to perform the surgery. There is

a company named TransEnterix that has engineered a new and innovative instrument

" Spider " to allow a single incision that will receive multiple instruments. It

was pretty amazing to awake from surgery and learn that I was the second patient

in the entire US to have a sleeve with this method.

I was out on a family outing on my 5th post op day. I returned to work from home

(email, conference calls, etc) on day 7. The umbilical incision is very small

and soon will be unnoticeable. The surgery has given me the freedom to return to

my former active life style. I have absolutely no regrets and would encourage

anyone that is considering a bariatric procedure to consider a single incision

spider sleeve. My Dr. is Dr. Marema US Bariatrics and Flagler Hospital in

St Augustine, Fl. I can tell you from experience that it was also worth

traveling a distance to see a surgeon with such technical expertise. Dr Marema

is also a bariatric patient and has assembled a team of skilled professionals

that will assist you through your entire weight loss journey. Due to other

health conditions I have had the opportunity to travel to some very large and

influential medical centers such as Mayo, Vanderbilt, etc. I can honestly say

that receiving care at Flagler Hospital pre- and post- procedure has been the

best medical experience I have had. The clinical care is literally second to

none, they are a Center of Excellence for Bariatric Surgery and one piece of

advice " in network " does NOT mean " in your zip code " . I have learned the HARD

way to seek out the best of the best for any type of surgical intervention. If

you would like details on how I arrived at that knowledge I will be happy to

share my miracle survival story with you...email me at seemel150@.... As

soon as I can download some pics I will be happy to post my before and

after....and show you my little single abdominal scar! Best of Luck to all of

you who are beginning this journey. I am happy to say that I am finally off the

roller coaster and at a little over 3 months I am only about 15 lbs from my

goal...YAY!