My father is having DS done abroad. How long will he need to convalesce before traveling back...

I would go with Esquerra in MX too.

My sister and my H had their surgery in Spain. They were about 2 weeks post when we returned to the US. It was no problem but I had to carry everyone's luggage!

I stayed four days in the hospital and then another three in a hotel close by the facility..... the best tip I could give you is to buy the extra seat next to him.... I was given the same advise and I did it as well.... I sure am glad I did.. I was 372 pounds at surgery time, and trying to fit yourself in those small seats after surgery would be just about impossible.... Having that extra space next to myself was a life saver... even with that when I got up after being seated for a long time , you are still sore, and I was even a bit dizzy..... Buy the extra seat... the arms between the seats lift up, they will bring you a seat belt extender......

Thanks everyone. A group of his friends have offered to help pay for a year of insurance that will cover his surgery. It?s supposed to be a Christmas present. I hope they actually go through with it. If not, then there?s always Dr. Esquerra. My dad has changed his mind about DS. He only wants gastric sleeve surgery. Apparently his friends mother had DS and is still constantly sick and malnourished many years later. Hearing about her issues terrified him so DS is completely off the table.

It's his decision of course, since he's the one who will live with the results, but that's a shame. There are excellent long term studies involving large numbers of patients showing that nutritional deficiencies/malnutrition are actually very uncommon with the DS if the patient is compliant, in other words, most of the time (not always) when a patient becomes malnourished, it's due to noncompliance.

If this woman is truly suffering, she could have the "switch" portion of the DS revised either to lengthen the common channel to increase absorption, or reversal of the switch portion with the "kissing X" procedure. Or, if she has never been gvein adequate nutritional information (a distinct possibility) she could improve with proper instructions...or she could have a course of digestive enzymes to increase absorption, or she could have intravenous nutrition for awhile...you get it, there are many ways to improve nutrition if the patient is cooperative, is given the right information, and if her doctors are willing to try different approaches. I'm very sorry she is having this problem, and hope she will come here for well informed advice.

Meanwhile, I hope your father will recognize that this is just one person's experience, and that there are many, many people living happily and in good health with the DS. Here's another one person's experience - I'm over 11 years post-op and doing great. The sleeve is safer from a nutritional point of view, but doesn't provide as much weight loss, has much more problems with weight regain, and doesn't do nearly as well for resolution of important comorbidities like type 2 diabetes. I wonder if you father knew about the people - and there are lots of them - who have the sleeve and a few years later are revising to the DS because of weight regain. We see new ones here all the time. There is no perfect bariatric surgery.

Larra

PS I think it's great that his friends are hoping to help him with insurance...but know that insurance doesn't always cover bariatric surgery and that there may be some high hoops to jump through.