How long is your common channel?

Mine is 50cm. Sitting at 160 and 5'3". And I'm not in any danger of losing too much right now. Had the bathroom issues of anyone who has wls, too thin to too thick. The more time that passes the more consistant I become.

The only time I had an urgent issue was when I ate an entire big of chocolate covered raisins while watching a movie. About 2 hours later, well, lets just say you CAN run and unzip your pants. But let me stress, raisins did that to me before surgery.

edited to change cc to cm.

I spoke to  my surgeon last week.  He plans to make my common channel 150cm.  My surgery is scheduled for Aug. 26, 2008. He is one of the best Duodenal Switch surgeons in the world.  He said this cc size would result in fewer malobsorbtion issues and fewer bathroom issues.  Should I have demanded a 100cm common channel?  Should I have asked for the research that brings him to that conclusion?  I just went along with his decision.  I put my life in his hands and hope all will be well. 

Art

Art-
I think you can trust Dr. Gagner's judegement, he is one of the best.  My CC is 150 (Anthone patient) and I have lost all of the weight I needed to lose and have no bowel issues.

Hey, 85cc for me. Love it, no problems. I do have a 6oz tummy...sometimes I wi**** were smaller, other times glad it is bigger, cuse I still like to eat & am happy w/ my loss at this time

Don't believe anything the non-DSers say about the DS!  They choose to stay misinformed by posting misinformation on the Main Board and other boards!

Anyway, my common channel is 100 cm (about 40 inches).  My vertical sleeved stomach is 100 ML (3 oz).  The restrictions I experience from my smaller stomach is a lot more natural than I would have experienced from any other procedure except the stand-alone VSG.

My surgeon uses 100 cm (about 40 inches) for the common channel, the standard for all his patients.  He believes that a shorter cc can result in malnutrition (maybe more vitamin deficiency?).  He does not use the Hess method to determine the proper cc (I asked).

I have read about our DS family having shorter and longer common channels.  They are proactive in their labs and vitamins and make adjustments as necessary from their latest lab results.

I return to my surgeon for my 3-month follow-up, including labs, in August.  I will look forward to seeing what my 3-month labs results show.

> Someone (who is not fond of the DS or distal) told me that it shouldn't be shorter than 150cm. Anything less will cause constant diahria and sever malnutrition.

My common channel is 65cm and I do not have any serious bowel problems, nor am I dying of malnutrition.

I think your someone has given you questionable information regarding the DS.

Steve

Keep looking until you find a real DS surgeon to speak with about the surgery.  The best list of DS surgeons is found at duodenalswitch.com .   Most of us had to travel to have DS surgery but it is so worth it.

Red

the length only has to do with the absorbtion rates. it's what you eat that dictates what kind of diarrhea or malnutrition you will have. you always always no matter what length have to take your vitamins and stuff, and always take your protein in so your body doesn't take the protein from your muscles.
i have constipation issues, and my surgeon told me that no matter what length i got i would still have those issues because of how long my colon is. i'm sure it's same the other way around..besides a lot of people eat a lot of fat which goes through your body at warp speed, but you can take immodium or something to slow things down. hearsay is never the best advice, this surgery can be generalized, but it's still very individualized. keep doing your research though, you'll find all the info you need around here!! : )

I thank everyone for all their replies.  I know what I want and need to do.  I know I will always hear negative responses from others.  I had an appt. with Dr. Maguire yesterday in  Ohio and I just need to get some things together for the insurance company and they will decide. 

I know that I can come here and get real information from actual experiences.

Thank you all,
Joyce

Mine is 75 cm and no bowel issues here. I am almost eight years out and my labs are good. No malnutrition here either.