Acid Reflux and Heartburn

Hello all! I want to have the sleeve but I'm oh so worried about having terrible acid reflux. It was awful when I had the band. Also, for those who have diabetes, did it help with your A1C numbers. I have a Dr.'s appointment in 3 days and have to give him my final choice. I'm a light weight and need to have RNY, but I want the sleeve. I need to do this for my health. Your feedback "Please".

If I had diabetes I would have chosen the RNY. I did have GERD pre-op but have had no problems since my VSG. I was lightweight too.

Paula

I planned on VSG for 3 years. When I finally saw the surgeon, he said, "the two reasons we advise RNY instead of VSG are GERD and diabetes, and you have both." He said he would do VSG if I really wanted, but that there would be a high chance of needing to revise to RNY down the line. Since my insurance only covers one procedure lifetime, that made up my mind. I couldn't be happier that I changed course now -- I used to get multiple acid-related nausea spells a day even on twice-daily Prilosec, and I haven't had a single instance of that since surgery.

That said, if your GERD was due to the band and isn't present now that you (presumably) had the band out, your situation might be very different. It definitely warrants a conversation with your doc.

Thanks, RNY should have been my choice rather than the band, but I did have the band and had it removed a year ago. I've also spoken to my dr. about it (3 opinions) and they all say that they will do either one.

I have diabetes and GERD. My surgeon made it clear to me that since I am diabetic bypass is the gold standard for curing diabetes. I knew that through my research. However, I PERSONALLY do not want to have bypass surgery for many reasons. The information he gave me (and I'm looking at it right now) is the sleeve has a 45-58% of controlling/eliminating diabetes and the bypass has a 60-84% of controlling/eliminating Type 2 Diabetes (FYI the band is 20-59%). These numbers are from what what shown in clinical trials so I don't know how accurate they really are. I will take the chance I may still have to deal with diabetes (although I feel as though I can go off of most of my meds at least) because I really fear having the bypass. Its a personal decision though. I know my GERD could worsen as well but I'm okay with being on medication for that as well. Also, I knew three two people who had GERD before the sleeve and neither one has it now. One of them had it and was not on any meds the day of surgery and the other had to be on meds for about one month after surgery and hasn't taken any since then and her surgery was one year ago.

I went to surgery (VSG) as a type 2 diabetic..when I left the hosp my sugar was so good the surgeon told me to stop everything, just check my blood 3 times a day..when I went back for my check up he said I could quit that also...last blood work my A1C was a 5! The gerd I have seems to be worse since the surgery but I take 1 prilosec a day and it's working to keep it under control. Good luck with which ever surgery you have and keep us posted

Diabetes - depends on how long you've had it and how severe it is. If you doc tells you that losing weight will help resolve diabetes, then either sleeve or RNY will probably do the job. If you've had it for a long time, if your A1C is very high, if you're already on insulin, you have a better chance of remission with RNY. Your best chance of remission is with the DS.

GERD - I'd ask the doc to check how your esophagus is functioning. The band has caused damage to some people, and the sleeve will make the GERD worse. If your esophagus is damaged, go with the RNY.

I have Type II diabetes and was taking 2000mg Metforming and 10mcg Byetta per day. I went home from the hospital off all my medication. My A1c since surgery has run from 5.0-5.5. VSG can absolutely put you in remission from diabetes, don't let anyone tell you different. However, it also depends a bit on whether you're insulin dependent and how long you've been on insulin.

Whether or not you STAY in remission depends on your eating habits after surgery. If you start eating bread, crackers, chips, pasta, white flour and sugar you will throw yourself right out of remission and end back up on meds. Regardless of which type of surgery you have. No WLS is a miracle "cure" - the best that any of them can do is put you in remission from the disease. You won't ever NOT be a diabetic again; you'll just be a diabetic that controls her disease with diet and exercise.

I have a good friend whose husband had RNY and I have a SIL who had RNY. Both of them initially got off their meds and insulin (both were insulin dependent). Today they are both back on all meds including insulin because they went back to eating crappy food after each losing over 100 lbs.

Thanks, that make a lot of sense. If I could ever get my A1C down to 5.5, nothing would ever take me out of that zone. my Dr. cant see me until later this week. I'll keep all informed.

Hi

i also am switching from band to sleeve and worry about reflux affecting my esophagus . Just wondering how you are doing years later.

my surgery is scheduled for the 16 of jan.