Guest guest Posted March 31, 2010 Report Share Posted March 31, 2010 Thank you so much Sandy. Social medicine has many advantages, butin a small province like the one I live in, anything " extra " is not always available. Now I know what to ask ( & fight) for. Charline On Wed, Mar 31, 2010 at 3:35 AM, moonshadow.sandy < moonshadow.sandy@...> wrote: > > > Charline asked a question yesterday that seems to have not gotten posted by > . don't know what happened - sorry! > > She asked what labs are needed as baning followup. > > For a long time, the surgeons thought that, since we are supposed to be > eating normally, just in smaller quantities, that bandsters needed no > specific lab followups like the bypass peole or Sleeve patients do. > > This has since been disproven, with all the MANY bandsters who are turning > up deficient in several essential vitamins and minerals.We simply are not > getting the quantities of vitamins we need. Others are unable to eat much > meat, or many vegetables, Portions are often small ( too small). > > Also, most US residents are deficient in Vit D, not just bandsters, the > amts we need have been increased, and the recommendation now is 100 iu - 200 > iu a day. Most vits provide only 400 iu. EVERYONE should get a Vit D test. > The Vit D I take and recommend in the liquid D-drops from Carlson labs. Do a > web search to find the best prices, as they are very competitive since it is > such a good product. ONE single tasteless drop a day in anything - could not > be easier! > > Many nutritionists and surgeons now recommend getting PRE-op labs, as a > great many obese people are deficient in nutrients even before bariatric > surgery. Most also want us one a high-quality Bariatric vitamin for 2-3 > months minimum BEFORE going into surgery, to correct the deficiencies. Then, > the bariatric vitamins remain essential. > ----------------------- > These are the tests recommended by a Suzette Kroll, RD, Band Nutritionist, > whose website I'll give in the NEXT post: > > Here's a list of the labwork you should ask to have checked: > > Indicators of Iron Status > > Hemoglobin (Hgb) > > Ferritin > > Transferrin > > Indicators of B-Vitamin Status > Folate > > Homocysteine > > An Indicator of Bone Health > 25-Hydroxy Vitamin D > > Note from Suzette: : Blood calcium levels do NOT reflect your calcium > intake or your bone health. Unfortunately your bone health can't be assessed > from any simple blood test. 25-Hydroxy Vitamin D provides useful > information, but a more complex (and expensive) test called a DEXA bone scan > is the best way to determine bone density. Consider having one done > pre-surgery so you have a baseline test and then every few years (or as > recommended based on your results) after surgery to monitor what your bones > are doing. > > My bariatric vitamin recommendations are simply intended to get you off on > the right foot. Don't forget that you need to follow up regularly with you > doctor to monitor your blood. > > As I've said previously, it's much easier to prevent nutrient deficiencies > than to try to dig yourself out of the hole once you have one. You're > getting a second chance at life with your weight loss surgery. Take your > health seriously along the way! > > --------- > Hope this is useful - > > Sandy > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 31, 2010 Report Share Posted March 31, 2010 We have to be very strong advocates for ourselves with the Band. No one cares as much about how we are andhow we are doing as WE do - that means we have to educate ourselves well about care and prevention of problems. I hope we here help with that. I'm guessing you're in Canada? Sandy r > > > > > > > Charline asked a question yesterday that seems to have not gotten posted by > > . don't know what happened - sorry! > > > > She asked what labs are needed as baning followup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 31, 2010 Report Share Posted March 31, 2010 //No one cares as much about how we are andhow we are doing as WE do //So true. I recently got my bloodwork done because I asked for it to be done. My surgeon did not tell me to do it despite my seeing him bimonthly since my sugery in June '09. I read it here that I should have my bloodwork done. My surgeon has not educated me on anything regarding the lap band. > > > > > > > > > > > Charline asked a question yesterday that seems to have not gotten posted by > > > . don't know what happened - sorry! > > > > > > She asked what labs are needed as baning followup. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 31, 2010 Report Share Posted March 31, 2010 I should probably keep my mouth shut here..oh well.. This type of thing makes me quite angry. When we go to a surgeon for banding, we are purchasing more than simply the surgery, which is quite a simple thing. To do well, we need a lot of education and counselling. The band is not an " implant it and forget it " procedure, as many surgeons make it seem. It needs regular followup for life. It's our responsibility to chose only a surgeon who has a complete followup program, including surgeon, fill technician, nutritionist, psychologist, and more. If such a program is not available, it then becomes OUR responsibility to learn about the things we need to know. When Dan and I were banded 7 yrs ago, very very few surgeons did any teaching. We both went to Mexico, as there were few US surgeons even DOING the procedure, let alone any experienced ones. The US prices were absurd, anyway. Now it is 7 yrs later, and many programs still give minimal care. People still go to Mexico to try to save a few dollars, but they still get minimal care - and it usually ends up costing far MORE overall than if they had gone to a local surgeon and paid a bit more initially. By the time they count in long flights or drives back to the surgeon for fills, possibly for urgent needs on short notice, the cost of unpaid local ER visits when they could not get back to their docs in time, lost wages for days off to get back, etc etc - the cost is often much higher than the Us docs. I personally do not any longer EVER recommend going to a surgeon far away . There are just too many serious risks in not having a nearly surgeon quickly available. Sandy r > > //No one cares as much about how we are andhow we are doing as WE do //So true. I recently got my bloodwork done because I asked for it to be done. My surgeon did not tell me to do it despite my seeing him bimonthly since my sugery in June '09. I read it here that I should have my bloodwork done. My surgeon has not educated me on anything regarding the lap band. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 1, 2010 Report Share Posted April 1, 2010 Yes, I live in New Brunswick, Canada. The Federal government funds our health system by giving money to the provinces. I think the amount is based on population. New Brunswick's entire population isn't even equal to a large city (750,000), so our system is badly underfunded. > > > > > > > > > > > Charline asked a question yesterday that seems to have not gotten posted by > > > . don't know what happened - sorry! > > > > > > She asked what labs are needed as baning followup. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 1, 2010 Report Share Posted April 1, 2010 Yes, I used Dr. Kuri, and was his unpaid and paid Patient Educator for several years. I no longer support him in any way, and do not advise using any surgeon but a local one, after all the horror stories and exceptionally poor care I have seen from distant surgeons. it is the months and years of close followup AFTER the surgery that determine how well we do and if we will be able to keep our bands - or have to pay for another expensive surgery to remove it, and then possibly another expensive surgery for another type of WLS. In addition, and also VERY importantly, none of the Mexican surgeons are able to get or use the new generation of Inamed bands - the AP bands - that are MUCH improved over the old Inamed bands - the 9.75, 10.0, 11 cm and VG ones. FAR fewer slips and erosions with the AP (Advanced Performance) than the old bands that the Mexican docs still are using. THis issue alone forces me to advise against going to Mexico. Sandy r > > > > > > > Didn't you have your band from Dr. Kuri and wern't you one of his advisors? > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 2, 2010 Report Share Posted April 2, 2010 The follow up here is lousy, but the doctor does the best he can with the funding available. The good thing for me is that everything is free, the down side is that the follow up care is not what it should be. If not for inline groups, I would not even have a support group. The basic medical care is very good, but anything over that is often not there. An example is that nutrient/vitamin testing is not available at my local hospital. Our health care system is in crisis. > > > > //No one cares as much about how we are andhow we are doing as WE do //So true. I recently got my bloodwork done because I asked for it to be done. My surgeon did not tell me to do it despite my seeing him bimonthly since my sugery in June '09. I read it here that I should have my bloodwork done. My surgeon has not educated me on anything regarding the lap band. > > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 3, 2010 Report Share Posted April 3, 2010 No I am not one of Dr Kuri's patients. > > > > > > //No one cares as much about how we are andhow we are doing as WE do //So true. I recently got my bloodwork done because I asked for it to be done. My surgeon did not tell me to do it despite my seeing him bimonthly since my sugery in June '09. I read it here that I should have my bloodwork done. My surgeon has not educated me on anything regarding the lap band. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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