anyone else taking part in research for WLS

 yesterday
i had an appointment at the research lab at St lukes hosp..  i've signed up with 3 research teams, that are running 3 year test on the affects of WLS.  .  today's test ran about 5 hours.  they took lots of blood ( 4 values), a MRI, then i was put in a pod for a breathing test,& i had a bubble put over my head for 30 mins, for another breathing test. i drink a soduim solution and gave more blood, ( 2 values), after 3 hours. i was weighed on 4 different BMI scales, and i was measured from head to toe.  they will be doing these again onces a year for 3 years.

 last week 
at Presbyterain hosp.. the testing was done on the computer for memory preformance. they'll doing doing that test every 6 months for 2 years.

  and another was a very long questionaire about eating habits and alot of blood work (about 10 values) was taken. i had to walk the hallways, urine sample, weigh & body measurement.

it's all very interesting. some of it's fun, the pays good, and i get indepth info on my health.

Mydear,

That does sound very interesting.  My area is too rural to have anything like that available. 

The memory performance test has me wondering.....are our memories supposed to improve with weightloss??

And what was the bubble over your head for??

With all that prodding and a poking I would hope you get good pay, but like you say the in depth health info is worth it.

Diane

I don't know about you but my memory has seem to have gotten worse since WLS  LOL  my vitamin levels seem to be ok.....I'm borderline low but still within range and I'm taking extra supplements for Vitamin A and D.  But i still feel tired all the time and my memory isn't stellar.

hi diane

they're testing to see if your memory improves after surgery.  some say it does. i told the researching maybe it will, because i won't be thinking about what i'm going to eat all the time anymore, LOL

the bubble over my head was to test my resting metabolic rate. i had to rest for about an hour with the ventilater hood over my head, while it collected the oxgen and carbon dioxide i breathed out.  i had to be very still and couldn't go to sleep.  singing gospel in my head helped me get through it.

mydear

That is wonderful that you are participating in the research study. I agreed to participate in one as well, but it was just questionaires. I also had to agree to let my doctor release some of my medical information, ie. height, weight, losses, etc.

I think they do the follow up at a year out. I am not sure how often after that.

I tihink as WLS patients one of the best ways we can give back is by participating in these research studies. Hopefully my participation will help an insurance company decide to cover the surgery I had or to cover someone they didnt previously cover for surgery.

i agree kelly... it was hard for me to find a dr here in NYc to do the sleeve for me.  every doctor said that they wouldn't get paid for it.  so, i'm feeling blessed and i do want to help make it easier for the next person who wants the sleeve.  and as i said before, i get paid for my time, and  i'm going to get all this inofmation about how my body is doing with my new stomach. sounded like a win, win situation for me.

I am doing the long term sucess rate study for the hospital I had surgery at.  They monitor you over 5 years.   I had to walk the halls and they time it at my last preop visti, filled out a question aire, bloodwork, genetic screen, urine sample.  They saw me at my one month visit, called me and asked my questions at 8 wks, then at 3 months I do all of the labs again and I will walk the hall to see if it improved my time at all.   It will be interesting to see.

hi heather D.

a 5 year study is great. i think the more frequent the testing, it helps you stay on track.  anything can happen from year to year.  but if you being checked every 3 months.  you can get back on track before it gets out of controll.  i'm hoping after they finish the studies i joined. i could join a longer term study. like one that monitors 5 yrs and to 10yrs after WLS.  that's where it really counts for us. how are we going to be health wise and is the weight still going to be off  down the road.

keep up the good work, mydear

What an excellent topic. And a great way to give back.

I'm interested in the sleeve but no one in my area seems to do it. Some of you here with that surgery seem to be doing quite well. Are most sleeves self-pay?

hi patty,   medicaid is paying for my surgery.  it's really hard to find a doctor here who will do the surgery if you don't meet the criteria to have it as the first part of a 2 part procedure.  HMO won't approve it as a single surgery.  i was referred to Dr Dakins because he associated with research that's testing the sleeve as an acceptable choice for WLS on it's own. 

mydear