Thomas Stellato Bariatric Surgeon M.D.

Dr. Stellato is someone that I've known for a long time - he's 'nice' once you agree to a scheduled surgery, his plan on his terms, but can be very mean & blisteringly curt if challenged especially by another woman MD professional - he doesn't know how to 'dialogue' - and this is in reference to his non-bariatric surgeries, but applies just the same to his new-found specialty of bariatrics (where the patient comes in with the diagnosis by kg/pound; no diagnostic ability required). You need to tell him to ‘dialogue with you.’
Where Dr. Stellato falls down, is if there's a post-op complication where the abdominal surgical incision - no matter how small - is still painful. Chest pain is not as well diagnosed as abdominal wall pains at UH -especially if you are female. And he'll mumble just schedule another surgery looking exasperated with your post-op performance – a surgery that you'll then try to cancel, if his secretary listens to her voice mail, because you need a workup and discussion of the other symptoms, and repeat surgeries are painful and require at least 3 months of healing time - and we all have better things to do. This is because HE – Dr. Stellato - can't feel anything, but didn't do the 'right' maneuvers on physical exam. It's a 'right here' finger touch diagnosis - but not a huge clinically palpable swelling = what he wants = showmanship which girls can’t muster. Women always have fingertips on exact spots of pain that look 'fine' - not the guy kind of complaint.
What Dr. Stellato misses in spades is something called: abdominal cutaneous nerve entrapment syndrome (ACNES) = superficial abdominal wall pain that occurs because of nerve inflammation or entrapment after an abdominal/abdominal wall surgery with scarring. He wants to schedule another surgery or blame the patient.
The treatment/diagnostic maneuver is an injection of local anesthetic after documenting a positive Carnett's sign (1926 Dr. Carnett). Per Wikipedia: 'In medicine, Carnett's sign is an eponymous finding on clinical examination in which (acute) abdominal pain remains unchanged or increases when the muscles of the abdominal wall are tensed. For this part of the abdominal examination, the patient can be asked to lift the head and shoulders from the examination table to tense the abdominal muscles.' Whatever, it doesn't require another surgery, or an argument, or dumping a patient, just some thoughtful compassion - and women patients get this brush-off much more often than males, and it occurs after one month's time of a healing incision. Dr. Stellato gets mad if you want to discuss this - because this means dialogue – like dialogue that you do with a calculus professor about the different ways to see a math problem. It can occur years later as the weight loss stabilizes or fluctuates. Abdominal wall pain should be in his diagnostic 'comfort zone,' but it isn't - and he's misdiagnosed physicians with this.

Reference: Greenbaum D, Chronic abdominal wall pain. Carnett JB. Intercostal neuralgia as a cause of abdominal pain and tenderness. Surg Gynecol Obstet 1926; 42:625-32.

This is not meant to be unpleasant and is not 100% positive - and this can/will occur in his female patients post-gastric bypass - so bring him this or another reference, so you don't get the wrong diagnosis, or scheduled for another surgery (there are several good clinical articles on google websites). Just make sure that he doesn't miss this for you. He's wonderful on the short slide, but can really hurt on the long haul, and he doesn’t know how to say ‘sorry my mistake. . .didn’t think of that. . .you might be right.’ And that kind of willingness to acknowledge a mistake, or an ‘overlook,’ is the best measure of a clinical surgeon – that they listen, that they dialogue.

Dr. Stellato wasn't very chatty at first. But he was very happy to answer any and all questions. I took my husband and daughter with me to the first meeting because they also had questions for him and he didn't mind at all. He has a great staff. They helped me through the tangle of getting my insurance to approve me (and they say that my experience is unique in their experience which is pretty vast) and never gave up on me. I would recommend them to anyone. They gave me all the information I needed to prepare for the surgery and encouraged me though it all.rnrnDuring my surgical stay, Dr. Stellato was a frequent visitor and I knew he was on top of my care. rnrn

I met Dr. Stellato on June 16, 2006. He was very informative and personable. I told him he came highly recommended and asked him straight forward was he comfortable with doing the surgery on me and he said \"yes\". I know I am not the typical case and I wanted to make sure he was confident about my case. He is confident and I have confidence in him. I also met with Kristen his nurse and she was very nice as well. I went for another visit with Dr. Stellato on March 5, 2007. This was the second time we met. My impression hasn't changed he was still friendly and thorough. He decided to do my surgery laparoscopic. Which is great!! He said they got there times down to about the same as open and there my be less risk of infection without such a big wound. We went over the consent forms and risk again. I told him he has a fan base. Everyone I met that asked who my surgeon was said I was going to the best. I must say that has made me feel really good. I am happy with my decision to have Dr. Stellato do my surgery. All I can say is wow!! I had my surgery on 3/20 and didn't have any complications. Univeristy Hospitals of Cleveland was an excellent place to stay. The staff was great!! I can't say enough good things about Dr. Stellato..he's just great. He's very nice and in my opinion the best surgeon in his field.

Loved the doctor from the first visit. Was a no nonsense man that was very honest and talked to you not at you.rn Staff was great and really helped me though the year long fight with my insurance company... Sometimes I'm sure they got tired of me calling to check on things but always called me back and were very pleasant.rnI would rate the entire experience very high and actually the only thing that was a little scary was how alone I felt in the hospital the few days after surgery. I was pretty much on my own and was sent home with papers. rnAt the follow up appointments he makes me feel like any question I have is important and takes the time to listen and answer. rnHis associate Dr Hallowell (sp?) was also very nice and had a great sense of humor...rnI am very happy I chose them for the surgery.

Great surgeon. Very friendly and professional. I think he did an excellent job. The office staff is very helpful once you are approved for surgery. And VERY responsive in the month after surgery. Feel free to contact me with questions.

My impression of Dr.Stellato was that he is straight to the point. No small talk at all. Asked checklist kind of questions and then gave his conclusion & then turned me over to the bariatric nurse. The office staff was very friendly. Dr didnt really go over any type of after care program. He just stated that his support meetings are mandatory (at least 1).

Dr. Stellato and the whole team at UH in Cleveland are FANTASTIC! They are very concerned and care about you and the process you are going through. Questions are answered right away and concerns are addressed. I felt very comfortable in their care and am truly thankful for their guidance and support. My hospital stay was not the most pleasant but that was just a mere moment in time on my journey to a new me.

I had my first visit with Dr. Stellato on Monday, May 2,2005. My first impression of him was that he seemed stern and direct and maybe even a little scary. But as the appointment went along i got a little more relaxed with him. He told me what he expected out of me before the surgery, like i was not to gain any weight and to start exercising. His staff was wonderful and caring. The nurse told me everything that i needed to get from my PCP that i hadnt gotten. Overall i would say that they were all great and very explanatory about everything. I would have to say that his surgical competence is better than his bedside manner.

Dr. Stellato seems great. His staff is extremely professional and very helpful. My surgery had to be moved back twice due to other health reasons. My insurance approval had to be extended, but it went smoothly.

I will write more later, surgery is 6 days away!!!

My surgeon is Dr. Thomas Stellato at University Hospitals of Cleveland. I like him alot. He is very nice and listens to your conserns. He tells you everything that going to happen and everything that could happen. He doesn't leave anything out. He's very forword about everything. Then there is Nicole, she is just plain awesome. She is so sweet and she will work with you with everything. I have nothing bad to say about either one of them. They let me know everything there was to know before hand.