Manuel E. Castro-Arreola Bariatric Surgeon MD, PhD, FACS

What can I say about Dr. Castro? He is a hero to me. He saved my life. It took me some time to be able to get everything in order to get my surgery done, but let me tell you, he and his staff were right there with me the whole way.
The surgery went great and he has a really good bedside manner and he is very competent in what he does.

I would recommend him highly to anyone, and I have in fact sent friends there.

Dr. Castro is an outstanding surgeon with excellent 'bedside' manners. My wife went along with me for my initial appointment, and we asked a ton of questions. He was courteous and answered each of the them without feeling rushed. His office staff is very friendly, always helping when I would call, and always seemed eager to see me on appointments and help with insurance. When I went to the hospital to check in the day before surgery, admin assistant, the admin nurse, and the nurses on the bariatric nurses could say enough about Dr. Castro. Surgery went well - and he came by to visit that night and the next morning - again spending extra time talking with my wife. Just a very caring, loving doctor. My wife has had other surgeries where the surgeon just wants to get in and out and lacks any kind of a personable touch - Dr. Castro is the opposite - was very carrying to me and my wife. Followup appts have been great - same great customer service. I would highly recommend Dr. Castro as a bariatric surgeon. Surgery Date - 6/2/2010 @ 257, now 93 days later - down 50 lbs - at 207! Goal weight is 175 by Halloween... Thanks Dr. Castro!

My first impression of Dr. Castro was, "This is the guy who is gonna help save my life. He and his staff are very nice people. They are like family and they care. It was plain and simple on the risks of surgery. It was a very high risk at 700 lbs going into surgery. BUT there were even higher risks by not having it done. The after care is emphasized greatly. It's very important to follow Dr. Castro's instructions and plan to the "T" and don't be afraid to ask questions. Dr. Castro's surgical competence on the surgery and bedside manner are both outstanding. I would recommend Dr. Castro highly over any bariatric Dr. in the country. He's awesome. I give him a 10/10 rating.

Upon meeting Dr. Castro I was immediately put at ease. He is genuinely concerned with each patient that comes to him. He told me the facts and the risks about each surgery option and was very good at not trying to push me toward a decision. I really appreciated the way he was available to talk to me for as long as necessary and answer all my questions. He urged me to read about my options and come back if I had more questions.

Dr. Castro's office staff is wonderful. They were there for me every step of the way. They handled the entire insurance process for me quite efficiently and made the approval process painless. They continue to be very supportive and are always available to answer questions for me.

For future patients, I would recommend they do their research before your first visit. Don't only research the type of surgery you think you want. Look at the other ones. Through my discussions with Dr. Castro I realized that the one I originally chose wasn't the best choice for me. Be sure you have the BEST fit.

The aftercare program at his office has been great. They are always available if I have questions and I have had regularly scheduled check-ups to make sure I am doing well.

Overall I would rate Dr. Castro and his office a 9 out of 10. The only reason I wouldn't rate him a 10 is because it was difficult for me to take time off during the day to attend monthly nutritionist meetings. I would recommend having an evening option for those. I know of people who would like to go to him and have surgery but haven't been able to make the commitment because of work obligations.

Dr. Castro's surgical competence and bedside manner are both top notch. I would highly recommend him to anybody considering WLS.

In November 2007 I tipped the scales at just shy of 600 lbs. My blood pressure was out of control, I was in constant pain and I was confined to a wheel chair. Except to go to doctors appointments, I had not been out of the house in almost 3 years. I still get a flood of emotion just thinking about it. After searching for a surgeon that would accept my insurance I was referred to the folks at New Beginnings Surgical Group. After attending the initial seminar I met with Dr. Castro. He immediately put me at ease about the procedure. He explained in detail what would be done. I left the office feeling very confident that I would be successful in my weight loss. 2 years later.....I have lost 260 pounds. I would just like to say that to anybody considering bariatric surgery you could not choose a better surgeon or staff than Dr Manuel Castro and the folks at New Beginnings Surgical Group. Thanks to them....
I have my new beginning
William Cook 08-04-2010

I had my very first consultation with Dr. Manuel Castro today. As others have commented, he is very soft spoken and knows his stuff. He is very familiar with the problems those of us with older Lap Bands are facing. Dr. Castro was very patient and gave us plenty of time to answer any questions we had.

When I decided that I wanted to have weight loss surgery my friends and my doctor recommended Dr. Castro. I did my research on him and was impressed. I checked with my insurance company to see if weight loss surgery was covered in my plan and which procedures were covered and of course how much it was going to cost me. I did have my surgery with Dr. Castro. I have never met a doctor so committed and dedicated to his patients.His office staff is also very friendly. I work in a doctor's office so maybe I have a different perspective than other patients. As a patient it is our responsibility to know our benefits, what's covered and what is not. Insurance plans and requirements can change. I have been impressed with the results of my surgery. I have had several follow-up appointments and am very excited about my weight loss. I have had a wonderful experience and would highly recommend Dr. Castro and his staff. I would definetely do it all over again!!

I had a horrible experience w/this office. To begin everything was great my husband and I went to the consulations and Dr. Castro explained the different methods. I decided that the Sleeve would be the best option for me. When I told the doctor this he said that if the insurance wouldn't cover it he would code it as a Partial Bypass, which was fine with me. So to keep cost down I did my nutritional class with a hosptial that my insurance would cover this lasted 6 months. Then got the pyshic eval with the doctor, Dr. Castro recommended which was $120.00. Then I had to take a Pre Surgical Class that he charged $300.00 for I paid half and was to pay the other half at the time that they schuduled my surgery. I show up for my pre op visit and was told instead of 150.00 balance I thought I had I owed over $550.00. So I had to reschudule. Now today, I show up for my Pre op again get all of my labs done, the office still tried to tell me I had a balance of 591.00 until they realized I had already paid the balance a month before. When I see doctor Castro I notice all of my paperwork says Gastric Bypass. I remind him of what we has discussed during the inital visit and the sleeve was the procedure that I was going to have. He then tells me there may be a problem with the insurance. I ask well what about what you said before "Doing a Partial Bypass"? He didn't have an answer and had his girls working in the office find out if the insurance would cover the procedure. Come to find out my BMI isn't high enough to qualify for the sleeve only the bypass. I am really aggravated I paid $300.00 on a class that wasn't even necessary for me to take because they failed to do their job. I work hard for my money and had to save to pay the $566.03 now they have ripped me off for $300.00 I would have never taken the class or even done the surgery if I was told the Lap Sleeve wasn't going to be an option. They then tell me today that Dr. Castro used to code the Sleeve as the Partial bypass but he can no longer do that. That's nice they didn't think to tell patients this before they took my $300.00 for that class. The refunded me $416.00 and told me it would be immediate but of course that was another lie. I am so discourged with the office and my experience I cried and just giving up. Diet and exercise will have to do and if it doesn't work I oh well. I will have to be happy being a big woman. This is what I went through with this office if you want to give it try GOOD LUCK.

My first impression was a kind, compassionate
man who really wanted to help me.My impression
has not changed. Office staff was wonderful,
in fact most of them had had surgery by him.
He follows you for 5 years after surgery. He
emphasizes the importance of aftercare and all
I have to do is call them and they will help me and if they do not have the answer they will find it and call me. They have been true
to their word.I first wanted lapband surgery,
but Dr. Castro said that with me in a wheelchair, I would not have the fast, steady
weight loss I wanted and that the bypass would
be more of what I wanted. So I took his advice
and had bypass. When he did the surgery on
9-2-08 he found that I had a fatty liver so he
did the sleeve. He felt it would be better for
me. I agreed with his decision due to the liver status. He reassured me that my liver
would regenerate itself and be fine. I have
had no problems. He has followed me and done
the needed lab work and everything has been
within normal limits. I really like his office staff. They are kind and anxious to answer
any questions. He has an office in Arlington
and I go there to see him. I had surgery in
Dallas but see him in Arlington, which is closer to Fort Worth where I live. Both surgical competence and bedside manner with Dr. Castro are great.

First impression was ok. He seemed very nice and I liked him. My impression was pretty much the same all the way through.

His office staff is the worst staff I have EVER dealt with. They will block you from talking or speaking with the doctor.

The office staff always tried to trump what the doctor is wanting, most of the time succeeded. The office staff attempted to require me to do things that were unnecessary from my insurance but they refused to listen and told me for 60 days that they refused to send my claim in. Once I demanded they send it in, I was approved in 7 days without a hitch.

Future patients should remain far from this office because of the staff.

I would rate the doctor a 8 and the office staff who you are dealing with most of the time a -10.

The last visit I had in April, I noticed that there were several new employees and the experience was better. But only time will tell!