How do you know if your liver has shrunk enough??

I'm on my pre op and have been on it since Aug 3rd ish (might have been the 2nd?) my surgery is Aug. 17th.  I'm drinking water with/without flavoring, Protein shakes that I got at Walmart with Skim Milk (probably 2 per day), eating SF pudding, cream of wheat, soup / broth or soup (blended so it's almost nothing), SF popsicles, FF cottage cheese and that's pretty much it.


How do you know if you're liver has actually shrunk sufficiently? 

You don't, until after your surgery when your doctor tells you

My doctor only had me on clear liquids for one day pre-op, and didn't say anything at my followup appt today. I guess it bothers some surgeons more than others??

That sure seems to be true - my doc is a liver specialist beyond his bariatrics and he doesn't require any special pre-op diet other than the day before. I guess he knows his way around that part of our anatomy and it doesn't bother him - he probably sees a lot worse on his transplant patients. He said my liver was in good shape (despite having gained a bit during the month pre-op.)

If you have maintained hydrated and you managed to lose some weight your liver should have shrunk enough to have a safe surgery.  Remember the more you lose the more your liver will shrink.  Continue the liquids as per the instructions of your doctor.  I think you should be ok. 

Good luck,

Santos

 drink more rum to get your liver to shrink quicker! lol just kidding don't do that ... as long as you're following your dr's orders you will be fine!!

The key is to keep it low carb. A true fatty liver takes months to shrink, all the pre-op diet does is shrink or decrease the fatty/slimy/slippery fat deposits on the liver which makes it easier to move out of the way with a single trochar and avoiding slippage during the procedure.

I started with a BMI close to 50, all I had to do was a high protein/low carb diet whi*****luded all the meat, cheese, eggs, anything lean and high in protein I could eat. I never had to do liquids only except for the night before surgery. My liver looked stellar for my revision.

I haven't been drinking as much water as I'm supposed to ... they said 3.5 liters. I need to work on that for sure.

What if your ALT and AST enzymes are always high? Can you still have weight loss surgery?

Just because some surgeons are more cautious than others does NOT mean that they are less skilled. Nicking the liver is a big deal.

Just follow the instructions. The added benefit of doing so is a lower surgical weight.