Would you have the VSG with only 45-50 pounds to lose??

Risk of DEATH due to complications of weight loss surgery is one person in 200.  The risk is highest for men with comorbidities and higher BMI's.  Even the laproscopic vertical sleeve gastrectomy is a major operative proceedure. 

But---the patient in question, while a man, does NOT have a high BMI or any co-morbs---YET. I'm on the 'an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure' side on this one.

I have wondered about this for a while.......

Concept:

For a somewhat "Normal" person (American)........

The average normal weight American can go through adulthood overweight, and it seems normal to gain weight as the they age..... ending up severely overweight and enters the senior years obese.

The years starting in the 40's are when issues start to show up..... blood pressure, cholesterol, pre diabetes, heart disease..... we've all seen the trends..... get into the 50's and have the first angio and stent or heart bypass surgery......

What if ????

A person like the OP is talking about...... the weight has creeped up and it's looking like spending the rest of there life gaining weight every year.....

What if..... there was a VSG that was sized for there needs?????

Just a thought....

frisco

I WOULD... ONCE I WAS AT THE 50 POUNDS OVER WEIGHT MARKER, A LONG TIME AGO, I DIDN'T STOP GAINING.  I WISH I WOULD HAVE DONE IT THEN...  THEN I WOULDN'T HAVE GOTTEN ANY BIGGER.  PLUS YOU WILL HAVE LESS SKIN SAGGING PROBLEM SINCE YOU DIDN'T ALLOW YOURSELF TO GET ANY BIGGER.  JUST MY OPINION...

For me definitely YES i did it, im only 24 with my surgery weight been 201lbs and i wanna lose 50 to 60 lbs which i failed to lose on my own.. I already had my operation 8 days ago and i lost 11 lbs so far (thanks to my sleeve) knowing that my starting BMI was 32.5 only but i did it n would do it over again, my only drawback that its a self pay lol. Well i guess its different for everyone its all about what you want from the sleeve where do u see yourself and where do u wanna be. Most people used to tell me u dont need the sleeve u r not fat u r just slightly obese but i see myself differently im just so young for being obese or even overweight for the rest of my life, i wanna be skinny what's the problem!!

Hmmm.... that's a tough one. I want to say "no", but I think it's more about being ready for surgery. At "only" 50 pounds overweight, I wasn't ready, it took me getting to 375 and some mental "clicks" to be ready.

On the other hand, I wish I had been ready and done it when I was younger and not as large as I was... so...

In his position, I'd talk to a surgeon, see what they say... but also do a lot of internal searching.

I have 50 pounds to lose , I'm 5'1 was 186 my highest , 181 at surgery weight now 142. I wish I could have done this sooner. I love it.  As you know it's not a cure , it just makes the battle and life change easier. 50 pounds is a lot of weight and can cause problems. My opinion you don't have to be 100 pounds to get WLS.  And a fact a BMI over 30 is qualifying for WLS . Not by insurance but by the medical association and it is the surgeons choice what BMI he chooses to do WLS. This why why the sleeve has become so popular. It was always used and still is used as a 2 step process. Now realizing it can help people with lower BmI before becoming morbidly obsese with more complications. It's proactive.

I wouldn't, but I don't think being only 45 lbs overweight is a big deal. If it's a big deal to him and the doctor would grant him the surgery... that's his choice.

I have a BMI of around 32 (I am too scared to weigh myself) and have had a BMI of 35 in the past.

I am considering the sleeve after over 10 years of failed banding (port replacement, ulcers, gastroscopy, rebanding, and over 40 adjustments, severe reflux, vomiting in my sleep and gaining more and more weight with no sweet spot).

I have managed to 'cling on with white knuckles' to ONLY put on this much weight.  I weigh the same as I did before I had the band,  I have a strong family history of heart disease, hypertension and diabetes)  I have asthma and a very dodgy knee joint requiring surgery.

My desire to change to the sleeve is based around knowing that I will continue to put on weight and will end up with a high BMI. It is also based around my desire to 'do something' to prevent diabetes and heart disease.  

Should your brother or I wait until we have 100lb to lose??  I have 45lb to lose currently. I could do the pre op diet to lose the weight but hisotry tells me that I put it back on and gain more.    Weight has been a HUGE struggle my whole life - I know myself and my capacity to diet and my inability to maintain weight loss.

I would agree that he needs to talk to a surgeon. If history shows he will continue to put on more and more weight then why wait until he is medically less fit for surgery with an increased risk of health problems??

Thanks to everyone for their input. 

I wish you luck in making your decision regarding revising to a sleeve.  I think your thinking makes sense.  Some of my biggest motivation to get the sleeve is that it gives you a fighting chance in keeping the weight off.  My thinking was that if I was lucky enough to diet and get the weight off I would likely be in the 95% that regains.  I am so happy with my decision to have the sleeve.  My recovery was a walk in the park - I was back at work a week later.  I had no issues with any food tolerance.  And I lost the first 75 pounds with very little effort.  The easiest I've ever lost.  I didn't find it at all hard to stay on program.  My weightloss has pretty much stopped now and to get to goal I have recently tightened up my plan and now have to get stricter.  But I do feel that I have a very powerful tool.  If you get the sleeve I hope you have an experience like mine.

stephanie