Unknown long term

**Funmomof4** · 12-02-2012 12:23 AM

How come I keep hearing the term that the long term complications of the sleeve are unknown? I thought this surgery has been performed for a long time? I know it technically was not for weight loss but wasn't it the same type of surgery were they would know what happens long term?

**5DogMa** · 12-02-2012 10:31 AM

I'm not thinking (but I'm no expert) there wouldn't be any "long term complications" from having VSG. All they've done is take away 85% of your stomach so it's smaller. Your stomach works in the same way unlke with RNY. I think if you take a lot of medications you would need to drink a lot of water with them since there is so little room for them to disolve. Time released meds also would require a lot of drinking water. I guess that's another good reason to drink all the water the recommend. I think daily long term use of some types of asprin, IB and other pain meds could cause some problems but that's true even if you don't have a small stomach. This surgery hasn't been around as long as the gold standard RNY. I am not worried about long term complications since there were no complications 've had or I forsee.

**niamh** · 12-02-2012 10:58 AM

I think the complications to worry about are primarily peri or soon post-op. What kind of complications do you mean? I did ask my surgeon about the reliability of the staples in the longer term (e.g. 20 years plus) and he said they are the same staples they use for stapling the stomach when removing cancer, and they are very reliable. That was my main concern for the long term.

**patch640** · 12-02-2012 11:00 AM

We certainly know the long term effects of being obese. That I do know.

**marilynlw** · 12-02-2012 04:20 PM

My 2 cents. I think they are talking about long term success. With the RNY they had data from patients 10 and 20 years out and know percent of patients weight loss and percent of patients who regain their weight after so many years, and any long term complications. They don't have long term data for the sleeve as doctors have not been doing this procedure for as long and some doctors still try to convince their patients to have the RNY bypass. But the data they have been getting has been very favorable.

**bergamini** · 12-03-2012 08:35 AM

Well, the first duodenal switch was performed in 1976 and the gastric sleeve is part of that procedure, so it appears to be about 36 years old at least and full gastrectomies have been around since the late 1800's, I believe.

**Munchkin** · 12-03-2012 10:50 AM

I think when the doctors say they don't know long term implication or long term effect because there weren't studies done for this surgery for long term (like 10 years study).

**leesooim** · 12-03-2012 10:56 AM

I think we can maybe even compare results from stomach cancer patients who have had similar procedures done.

Surgery for stomach cancer

Obviously they didn't have this done to lose weight, but the procedure sounds similar and I think you might see more long-term (i.e. 10 years or more) study results on these patients than bariatric ones.