VSG vs. RNY

I am now confused as which procedure to have. I was all set to have VSG on 9/5.   I went to my pre op appt. this week and found out that I have a hiatal hernia.  My surgeon suggested that I think about changing to RNY due to the possible reflux problems I might have with the sleeve.  
To be honest, I would have already had the RNY procedure done 8 years ago but my insurance wouldn't cover it at that time.   I found out about VSG in January and have been pursuing this route since finding out my new insurance will cover bariatric procedures.   I really thought this would be the answer for me since the biggest concern I have is the possibility of horrendous gas that you can have with the RNY.  I am a nurse that works very close with patients and that is a huge concern of mine.    I am not sure what to do now....  any words of wisdom????

Your surgeon should be able to fix your hiatal hernia while he/she is in there sleeving you.  Mine did, as did many others here.

That said, a lot of us still have reflux post-op, but reflux is a small price to pay to have all our insides work like they are supposed to.  I had reflux pre-op, and Nexium gave me relief; I have reflux post-op, and Nexium gives me relief.  HA!  

I just can't imagine having an RNY (no offense to anyone who has one; we all choose the best for us!) and having to worry for the rest of my life about malabsorption of meds and food.  I just don't think you can go wrong with the VSG.  Best wishes!

--Dorothy  

Many people that have sleeves have also had a hiatal hernia repaired during their sleeve procedure.  I am one of those people.  My hernia was fairly large and Dr. Curry did a great job on the repair.  I don't have any reflux issues.  The following link is a youtube movie of a hiatal hernia repair.  If you have the RNY without the repair, you are still going to have a hole in your diaphragm. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbFcuBUCOPM

 it is certianly not a given that you will have reflux issues, but a possibility.  I had HORRIBLE reflux pre op and had a hiatal hernia repair completed during surgery.  I have not had one moment of heart burn since surgery.  I eventually started taking some acid reducer only because it was mimicking hunger.  So, for me it was because of the surgery the reflux got better!

Reasons why I chose vsg:
1.  No rerouting- huge deal.  My mom died from colon cancer and even though it is not related it just freaks me out too much.
2.  I can take medicine that rny patients can't.  I have cancer and asthma, and need the full spectrum available to me.
3.  No dumping (or at least a very small percent of vsg patients dump).  I am a teacher and cannot abandon a classroom of 10 year olds becaue of dumping.
4.  Stomach works exactly the same, just a smaller capacity.
5.  No pouch, nothing can get stuck.  My brother in law can't eat pasta or bread because it gets stuck and I don't want to deal with that.  He also can't do any sugar- I didn't want to be that restricted.
6.  Malabsorption- didn't want to deal with it.  I was already low iron pre surgery.
7.  No blind stomach- everything we have can be seen by a doc when scoped.
8.  Lower complication rate.
9.  No fundus left- can't stretch the sleeve out as easily.
10.  No ghrelin production- elimination or significant reduction of hunger as a result.
11.  Comparable weight loss.

Love my sleeve and I don't regret it for a moment!

Thanks so much for the replies.  I really appreciate all of your help and advice that I have received.