Nicolas V. Christou Bariatric Surgeon M.D.

I did my research on doctors to do a band to bypass revision. I was finding it a challenge finding a surgeon in Ontario who had a lot of revision experience. I found a few doctors in Montreal. After talking with Dr. Christou i knew he was the right one. At the time he had done hundreds of revisions. I felt comfortable that he new the ins and outs as well as the specific challenges to the procedure. He suggested an RNY for me and I went ahead with it. I was able to do all the labs and tests i needed prior to surgery with my local doctor and only needed to go to montreal for the surgery.

I had to drive 5 hrs to Montreal for the procedure and did 2 nights in the clinic. To be honest I asked to be released after one as I was feeling pretty good. I feel like my recovery for this procedure was easier than the original band. his staff were all great and I had a 6 week follow up with the dietitian, another at 3 months and have another at 6 months. I believe for new patients they now have a program where you can get a fitbit and they will do followups on that as well. I know Dr. Christou is now semi-retired, so not operating every day, I had to wait a few months to get in for the surgery, but it was well worth the wait!

My first impression of him was that he really cared about me and helping me.

Super nice, friendly and helpful. Very encouraging.

Dr Christou is amazing. His staff and himself throughly explained all the details with surgery, the risks to what to expect during and after surgery. He was there before surgery to make sure i was comfortable and if i had any last minute questions. Dr Christou was very helpful when i had an infected incision and answered emails right away, and pointed me in the right direction on what to do as i live 2.5 hours from his office.

He is caring and concerned about his patients and very knowledgeable. His staff is wonderful and caring and answer all questions in detail. Some people do feel they need more pain meds after surgery as he only recommends Tylenol, i did not need any post surgery. My aftercare has been great and as i stated whenever i emailed with a question it is answered right away. My surgery was covered by OHIP and included everything from pre-op, Optifast, and post op care.

I would highly recommend Dr Christou to anyone considering RNY.

Dr. Christou is very soft spoken, cool and confident. I felt very much at ease with him. He answered a cell phone call late on a Sunday evening when I had a fever and helped me over the phone. I think that says a lot about his committment to his patients. The staff were caring and kind. I would however, have liked a little more pain killers both after surgery and for home the first couple of days.

I would rate Dr. Christou as excellent in all ways.

March 9 2009rnI met Dr. Christou yesterday for the first time. He was a very kind and compassionate man. In spite of his long list of patients waiting for him in the hall, he gave me all the time I needed to ask questions. His program is all inclusive, meaning that what you pay includes the surgery, pre-op care, optifast regime and every post-op appointment for life. He got me in almost right away, because he takes patients through the private sector as well as public. Sadly, the publicly funded surgeries have a 7 year long wait-list.rnrnApril 4th, 2009rnWent for my pre-op testing. Spoke to Mary, Dr. C's assistant who is the sweetest, most wonderful person. She is sympathetic and encouraging and brutally honest. Talking with her made me feel like I was making the right decision and that whatever I endure after the surgery will me worth it. More than ever, I am ready to commit to a different lifestyle and I am ready to let go of my outer fat girl.

Dr.Christou was very informative and to the point.His office staff was amazing. They talked me through the process. The only issue I have had is that being an out of province patient OHIP did not cover my costs.

- Efficient. Brisk..came off like most surgeons.rnrn- Did not touch my stomach at all after surgery while I was in the hospital although the nurses did.rnrn- Surgery seemed to last the average amount of time. Was intubated while awake but the doctor and nurse in the OR handling this was great. Was a bit scary when they were speaking French not English in the OR while I was awake, but I asked them to speak English and they did with no problems.rnrn- Nurses in hospital were hit and miss and not speaking French was a huge disadvantage for me. Nurses also seemed very reluctant to contact the Doctor to have more pain meds authorized despite extremely high pain levels - I was in so much pain and so cramped up I couldn't stop crying. rnrn- Was given NO prescription for pain medication upon discharge, just directions for vitamins. Flew home as soon as possible to get the pain handled. rnrn- Emails with questions about aftercare or problems were addressed immediately despite the time change, although questions about what I paid for have still not been answered.rnrn- Was very thorough about explaining risks pre-op which I appreciated.rnrn- I think the stricture/scar tissue and hernia complications likely had nothing to do with Dr. Christou or the surgery. Just bad luck/odds for me. In fact, despite my negative comments in some regards, I firmly believe he is a highly qualified surgeon.rnrn- However, the lack of proper pain management directly after the surgery definitely was a problem and I believe added to my lengthy recovery process. rnrn- Doctors in Alberta said my first hospitalization was a direct result of \"poor pain management and post op care\". Not sure who is at fault for this though ultimately.rnrnOverall, if you can find a way to do this financially - I believe Montreal is a much better option than Mexico!!! The dietician and exercise physiologist I saw prior to the surgery were fantastic. My opinion is but one and not all patients seemed to have as much pain as I did.

I first contacted Dr. Christou in May of 2007, and after the first few e-mails that we exchanged I felt total confidence and trust in him.rnrnMy confidence in Dr. Christou and his team was confirmed for me when I had my first opportunity to meet him in his office on August 20, 2007.rnrnOctober 09, 2007, Surgery day in Montreal. I was not nervous and recovered well from the Gastric Bypass Surgery.rnrnToday, March 29, 2008, I have lost more the 125 pounds in the 6 months since my surgery.rnrnI would highly recommend Doctor Christou.

He was excellent, totally not condescending, explained everything clearly and his staff was superb. I felt very informed when I left the office.rnrnThe only issue was the french/englishlanguage problem with some of the nurses.rnrnSurgical competence is definitely most important, but he was both.rnrnWe are trying to create an aftercare program from the other side of the country. Once the holidays are over, things should progress.

Very good surgeon, excellent staff, excellent aftercare program, I really recommand him