Question
Sure, he can, but many prefer not to remove a healthy organ. There is a medication called Actigal you can take for six months post op that greatly reduced the risk of gall stones due to rapid weight loss - 32% of patients that do not take Actigal get gall stones, but only 2% that take Actigal get gall stones.
Kelly
Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.
Sure, he can, but many prefer not to remove a healthy organ. There is a medication called Actigal you can take for six months post op that greatly reduced the risk of gall stones due to rapid weight loss - 32% of patients that do not take Actigal get gall stones, but only 2% that take Actigal get gall stones.
Is this prescription? I go back on the 10th and would love to ask for it then if it is prescription.
Thanks!
HW333--SW 289--GW of 160 5' 11" woman. I only know the way I know & when you ask for input/advice, you'll get the way I've been successful through my surgeon & nutritionist. Please consult your surgeon & nutritionist for how to do it their way. Biggest regret? Not doing this 10 years ago! Every day is better than the day before...and it was a pretty great day!
Yes, it's Rx.
Kelly
Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.
Some do it routinely (my insurance authorized it as the same time as the RNY), but most surgeons -- like mine -- will not remove a healthy organ just because there is about a 30% chance that it will develop problems down the line. (Would you have your breasts removed just because there was a 30% chance of getting breast cancer?) Although we can live without it, the gallbladder DOES serve an important function, so removing just because it might cause trouble later doesn't make much sense. IF you already have stones or something, that increases the chance of a problem later, though, so taking it out makes a little more sense.
Lora
14 years out; 190 pounds lost, 165 pound loss maintained
You don't drown by falling in the water. You drown by staying there.
They will not take it out unless it is bad. I knew mine was bad but they gave me the test and said it was find. I asked them to test again and do a CT scan and sure enough it was bad and they took it our during WLS. That ended 30 years of pain for me. So if you think yours is bad, make sure they do all the tests they can because having one more surgery is no fun.
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