Help!! Small bowel resection

 Post Date: 10/3/11 3:09 pm 
 I went to my doctor due to the fact i have been gaining weight and not feeling well 5 yrs after my surgery.He did a scope and today called to set me up with a surgery date for small bowel resestion,he said my bmi is 1.8 away from Tricare requirement for a revision but this surgery may help me lose weight and may not.He aslo explained that I did have some englargement.I then asked well what if I gained weight and he said I never tell paitents to do that.I feel mas though I need the small bowel and the nrevision and i would rather go under the knife once.Any thoughts?

This is VERY confusing.

What surgery did you have?

What are the problems that would justify EXCISION of some amount of what appears from what yobbu said to be NORMAL intestine?

What is the cause of your "not feeling well" that would justify EXCISION of some amount of what appears from what you said to be NORMAL intestine?

You have "englargement?"  I assume you mean enlargement - but of WHAT?

If you have an RNY already, and Tricare, you're in a whole world of difficulty in trying to get them to allow you a revision to a DS.  And other revisions either don't work (Stomaphyx, ROSE, sclerotherapy) or are pretty awful alternative (ERNY, distal RNY).  Is either of those latter what he is proposing?  Or is he talking about removing and throwing away some of your small bowel?  Because I wouldn't accept that either.

Hi, Please re-read your post and see if you can clarify it.
It's confusing. What's enlarged, a part of the small bowel, stomach??? Once they remove part of the SB, there's no going back. What WLS did you have? You need to think twice and research alternative surgeries prior to having ANY other WLS procedure done. Pay special attention to all potential, long term side effects. I had several revisions eventually culminating with "takedown" of the entire mess. Of course, it couldn't be totally reversed and I lost most of my stomach and 2 ft of SB.
BUYER BEWARE!!!

 In 2006 I had lap RNY..I gotndown to 140-145 the last  year and half ive been feeling like crap,gaining weight,throwing up,stomach pains,dumping, night sweats..My pcp did blood work and said I was now a boderline diabetic which I was not pre-surgery and put me on Byetta 10mg twice a day..Still feeling bad in my stomach area and my weight now to 187 she said go see your bypass surgeon he did a Egd and said I needed a small bowel resection and also that my pouch was enlarged but my bmi was low for tricare to pay for a revision and maybe this procedure that I need regardless would help but it is not a promisebut it might..That was Friday today doc office call want to do surgery week after next and my deductible is $50 and 15%.I called tricare and they said cpt code 43848 which i got online was covered and that there was not a bmi requirement and I could go online to see all what is needed also. just dont want to have two surgeries when i can have one.

You need to tell him you want a full description, IN WRITING, of exactly what he's proposing to do. CPT Code 43848 is "revisional bariatric surgery", apparently of any kind---this tells us diddly-squat.

I would NOT consent to any procedure without knowing EXACTLY what was going to be done to me.

 I found the revisional code myself online because all he wants to do is the small bowel resection and from what I understand I need this no matter what. But at the time I do not qualify for a revision due to my weight  and tricare requirements but I do not want to have two different surgeries.I made an appt. for another opinion and that is tomorrow afternoon...

Please run away from this surgeon. You could lose weight by having some of your small bowel removed, but why remove it if it is healthy.

Also too, you are on TRICARE standard and can go in or out of network. Don't go to someone just because they are on the preferred provider list.

WHY does he want to resect - i.e., REMOVE, EXCISE - a part of your small bowel?  There is NO reason to get rid of healthy bowel that you might NEED later!  DSers have more than 1/2 of their small bowel bypassed (not in the alimentary tract) - but it is still IN THERE in case it's needed!

Please do not have a part of your small bowel removed just to lose more weight.   You do this when it is diseased or dead as an emergency not just to lose weight. There are complications that go with losing part of your small bowel such as severe malabsorbtion - you already have malabsortion with your RNY and if they remove part of your small bowel, the malabsorbtion will get much worse - so you will lose weight but you will also need a ton more supplements.  Please find another surgeon from a teaching hospital if you have one near you for a second opinion.  Make sure they have tons of experience.

I have an appt. for a second opinion today.I am not having this to lose weight I went in having problems and my surgeon did a Egd and he found the problems n recommend this surgery. I was thinking I need a revision.