Question:
I have juvenile diabetes and have my consult appt on Friday.

I was wondering if anyone has had the surgery (gastric or lapband) and has had any problems pre or post with the diabetes or problems before or after surgery. Everything I have read has only mentioned diabetes in general but has not elaborated on juvenile diabetes. I am currently on an insulin pump and was wondering if the surgery will help me get off the insulin completely or not.    — Crystal H. (posted on August 27, 2007)

August 27, 2007
Hi Crystal, I too am a juveenile diabetic and on an insulin pump. The fact that you were diagnosed as a juvenile or Type I diabetic means that your mancreas absolutely produces no insulin whatsoever. You don't mention your age but I am 49 and been a diabetic since the age of 9. I am pre op now but my diabetologist is all for the surgery. It will definitely help with your insulin requirements and any lifetime diabetic side effects but I hate to tell you that it will not stop you from neding insulin if you are a Type I diabetic. Good luck and if I can share anything with you that I have learned, please feel free to contact me. Lynn W.
   — Lynn W.

August 27, 2007
It will definately help with Type 11, but the surgery may not affect on type 1 at all. My BS has been better in just 3 weeks post op. Your surgeon and Endocrinologist are the only ones who can answer your question. I know there can be big problems with low BS after. ASK the right people
   — bderuiter

August 27, 2007
Don't know that I have any answers for you but while waiting for Aetna to approve me since JANUARY! I have since developed full blown type II Diabetes! I was diagnosed with a BS of 489! I am on two different meds and no insulin as of yet! My Primary Dr. feels that I will be off of the meds post op. Stinking Aetna approved me at the beginning of July and I was scheduled for the surgery July 31st...CANCELLED! I also had a huge raise in triglycerides, cholesterol and my ekg (which is normally abnormal) was abnormal and they made me PROVE to them again that it's normally that way! The surgeon's office would not believe my cardiologist! So I had to have ANOTHER ekg and do ANOTHER stress test to show them that my heart is perfectly fine! So now I am eating low fats, no sugars,etc. and waiting until possibly Oct or Nov to retest and get the stupid rny which would CORRECT all this!
   — LouAB

August 27, 2007
Forgot to add that a friend of my cousin had been taking 2 shots of insulin daily, had RNY surgery and now takes NOTHING!
   — LouAB

August 28, 2007
Hi Crystal, I am type 1 diabetic of 20 years and I had RNY last October. I use an insulin pump and I was able to keep it on during my surgery. It made it so much easier to control my blood sugar changes that resulted from the surgery and pain meds. Since surgery, my daily insulin requirements have been reduced from over 60 units to 10 units or less. Your blood glucose meter will be your closest friend. You need to check often to avoid lows and catch them quickly so you don't consume too many carbs and dump. I treat my mild lows with 2 glucose tabs, wait 15 minutes, then eat a small cracker with peanut butter or a half slice of bread with turkey.
   — Elizabeth C.

August 28, 2007
My endocrinologist told me that I would always have diabetes since I was diagnosed with type 2 before surgery. My surgeon did not mention it and I was off meds for a yr before I saw another dr. You may not need the meds, but you need to watch your blood sugar.
   — geneswife

August 29, 2007
At one point in time, Juvenile Diabetes/Type 1 Diabetes/Insulin Dependent Diabetes all meant the same thing... your pancreas does not produce insulin thus you have diabetes. But now we have kids with type 2 diabetes, and insulin is being used to treat some people with type 2 / adult onset diabetes. The difference between the two, as far as I can tell, with type 1, you produce no insulin, with type 2 your body is insulin resistant and it takes extra insulin to keep blood sugar at a normal level. If your pancreas makes insulin, then there is a good chance that weight loss will reverse the insulin resistance and you will no longer require additional meds. If your pancreas does not make insulin, then you will always need insulin... but if you lose a large amount of weight, you will most likely find that your diabetes is easier to control with more stable blood sugar. If you are overweight, a significant weight loss will improve diabetes whether you have type 1 or type 2.
   — mrsidknee

August 29, 2007
Recent long term RNY studies 10 year ones show a over 90% resolution of type 2 diabetes in the morbidly obese, and a corresponding DROP in death rate. Dr Philip Schauer has been on the news recently taling about this. MO in type one is pretty rare but our support group had a few members like that who did very well after the RNY.
   — bob-haller

August 30, 2007
Of course I don't know if you will be able to get off your insulin pump but I almost assure you that your insulin needs will decrease.
   — Stacey D.

September 24, 2007
As others have stated, if your pancreas isn't producing insulin and are a Type 1 diabetic, you will still continue to use your insulin pump post op, however, your requirements will reduce significantly. Keep good records of blood sugar readings for your endo to adjust for your needs as you lose weight. I'm Type 1 diabetic, had RNY 3 1/2 yrs ago, and my requirements went from 100-120 units of Humalog to averaging about 45-50 units now. But in the beginning, it was much much lower. Keep glucose tabs with you at all times. Take care!
   — SJWendy

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