Need some information and support
Hi,
I am Robin and I live in Florida. Wed. 12/12/ I am having by pass surgery in
miami!!! I still am sonfused about lap or open I’m 52yrs. old and almost 300
lbs. 5′5 tall. I am concerned about how long does each procedure take as some
one told me lap can take 6-7 hours, that seems a long time to be under general
anesthia. Of course I have to be concerned about going back to work and which
is less painful after! But my first concern is living through the anesthia.
Please answer quickly thanks for all the support- I quit going to OA meetings
this year and got sick of 50 years of dieting and now I can hardly function. I
am ready for the operation if you have any post op suggfestions please forwqard
to me email lioness7230@…
February 1st, 2003 at 10:23 am
Robin,
I had LAP RNY on 9/11. I also had my gall bladder
removed. My surgery started at 7:30 a.m. and was
complete by noon. There are several factors involved
regarding whether or not LAP is even an option for
you. First of all, not all surgeons do the procedure
laproscopically. It’s trickier and I’d certainly make
sure that if your surgeon does offer the option, s/he
has lots of experience doing LAP procedures.
Secondly, size can be a factor. As my docs explained
to me, the more weight one carries around the lower
abdominal area, the more likely they are to run into
problems with being able to maneuver the instruments
around. So far, they’ve had no women they couldn’t
complete the LAP on, but several men had to be
converted to open because of the amount of fat in
their lower abdomens and around their livers. Also,
sometimes previous surgeries create scar tissue that
the surgeons find make it necessary to do the open
procedure. As far as recovery, I can’t speak to what
the open incision feels like. But I was home in two
days with almost no pain. Still tired, though. Even
with LAP, we have to remember that we’ve had our
insides rearranged and it takes time to get back our
energy. Hope this helps.
Jennie—