Gastric redo

Question
I had my stomach stapled 13 years ago and recently did a barium swallow which indicated the proceedure was no longer valid.  Can I now have a Sleeve Gastrectomy?  And will I have to have major surgery again to take out the old staples and superfluous scarring or can it be done laporoscopically?

Answer
Cathy,
I'm guessing that your previous surgery was a Vertical Banded Gastroplasty.  If that's correct, then (in my opinion) it is not an option to revise to a gastric sleeve.  Most surgeons find that revision to the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass is the only weight loss surgery that is technically achievable from that point.

Many surgeons are now doing revision surgery laparoscopically, but I think your first challenge will be to find a surgeon in your area who will take on your case.  Many surgeons who routinely perform bariatric surgery find the additional challenge and complications of revision surgery to be too much to take on.

Your best bet is to find a Center of Excellence surgeon near you - you can search on the website

http://www.surgicalreview.org/locate.aspx


Best of luck!

Dr JP

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