Dead Mother!! - Page 3 - ThinnerTimes

bridgetgirl · 04-04-2008, 05:40 AM

kidney and liver concerns addressed:

The biggest complication immediately following RNY WLS is dehydration and kidney stones. That is FACT! So what do we do?????? Sip, sip, sip, sip and always keep our water bottles, ice chips and SF popsicles near to make sure we are getting the fluids in. That is the reason we are on a clear liquid diet for 2 weeks beofre trying new foods, even though people feel like they can start soft food sooner, it is insurance that we will not become dehydrated.

So if anyone of reading this post is confused, scared or intrigued by what the poster said, now you have the answer. i dont have a RN or a MD, but I do have the education about WLS.

Zenomia · 04-04-2008, 06:24 AM

Anytime someone goes into surgery, via for weight loss or a gall stone, they are risking their lives. The risk is further frustrated by prior health problems, pre-op weight, and operative risk followed by poor health management post operatively. These risks are the same with Gastric bypass as they are for gall bladder surgery, or any other general anesthesia surgery. I don't doubt that most people going into this are at some stage of liver disease, though I think 90% is reaching a bit... Regardless, that is one of the reasons people do this, to reduce the fat in the liver and reverse the effects of obesity. In cases where people are over 300#'s, they have additional health complications, and are surgical risks to begin with..the odds of post-op complications can increase exponentially.

I do not have any information about your mothers case to comment to it one way or the other, all I can tell you is that bad things happen, things go wrong and no matter what we do or what we have done, the end results are unavoidable. Your mothers bypass may or may not have been related to her subsequent passing, there are just too much going on in the human body to drop simple blame. There are just too many factors...

I am sorry for your loss, I truly am. I might suggest learning more about your mothers health history and everything that led up to her passing, if you think it will help you get a 'bigger' picture of the situation. In that way, you can make informed statements regarding her case and give your cautions with accurate information.

This board is very much an advocate for education, be it good or bad. What we try to avoid are assumptions, opinions and suppositions that are not based on fact and have no medical accuracy.

Again, I am sorry for you loss....I can hear the pain of that loss in your post.

CiCi · 04-04-2008, 08:41 AM

I think the use of "Dead Mother" is more upsetting/concerning than anything. Hmm... something is just not right here...

Godsblessedme · 04-04-2008, 10:11 AM

i agree with CiCi why would you title this post as that. Thats so morbid and wrong

Debz · 04-04-2008, 10:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bridgetgirl

so is it your mission in life to be angry at people who do it, or the doctors who perform it? If you are under the impression that this is a COSMETIC procedure, Im assuming you have that impression left by your mother, that indeed she was not at all prepared for this surgery. Oh and by the way 90% of people who have weightloss surgery do not have problems with their liver and kidneys, lets not be dramatic.

It sounds like your mother was sick for some time, and ignored the symptoms and signs because she thought it was all apart of how one would feel after a big operation like hers. Again, it sounds like your mother did not take advantage of the support groups and educational groups that people are urged to become apart of post operatively.

I think your mad at your mom, for living you untimely. Her life was too short. My dad went into liver and kidney failure after having a bone spur removed off his spine. What was supposed to be an overnight event for monitoring, turned into almost 2 weeks of not knowing if he was going to live. Things happen, I am sorry for your lost. But please dont come here and rain on my parade, you need to locate a support group to assist you in your time of grief, not come here acting like a bully! Please go away and grieve with people who know you.

Thank yo for saving me the time of responding to this post....you said it just like i would have. Go Bridget!

That being said, I'm sorry for your loss. It sounds like you could benefit from the services of a grief counselor.

izanmanyzanz · 04-04-2008, 10:57 AM

I am very sorry for the loss of your mother, but I do agree with so many here, that you must gather all her records, read through them, ask more questions and then make more informed comments from that point on. When my mom passed of pancreatic cancer, I blamed her for a long time for smoking. The cancer is not what ultimately killed her though, it was congestive heart failure. The cancer played its huge part in shutting things down, but her lungs filled with fluid and she died. Please, go through all your mother records, you will no doubt find there was something there before that indicated she had problems before surgery. I am sorry you are hurting and wanting to lash out on the one thing that is keeping so many of us alive and happy again with life. Please contact someone to help you with your grief and please know that 95% of us that has had this surgery has made very informed and a serious decision regarding "OUR" life. It was our choice to do so and don't condemn us for that.

RebeccaNV · 04-04-2008, 10:58 AM

First off, I had a liver transplant 23 yrs go (next month) so this topic is of great interest to me. I have been researching gastric bypass surgery and it's affect upon the liver for several months now. Ty to the OP for bring it's attention to the forum.

I have read real, actual MEDICAL reports on the subject. Yes, liver failure can occur as a result of gastric bypass surgery. I have not yet discovered the reason (I am guessing that it may be from rapid weightloss) but I will continue to research this. The link that I posted at the end of this message states that liver failure can result many years after gbs (I will be looking for further medical evidence to substanciate this).

Many obese ppl have liver disease (NASH, NAFLD, more commonly known as fatty liver disease) and not even be aware of it. It is even more prevalent amongst those who are obese and have type II diabetes (which I have). I have an annual ultrasound of my liver and fatty liver deposits showed up on the scan two years go but this was not reflected in my bloodwork (done every 8 weeks) until this past January. The high liver enzymes also coincided with elevated glucose numbers, which prompted my dr. to discontinue my oral meds and begin insulin therapy. This has resulted in a weight gain of 22lbs, hence why I am here researching gastric bypass sugery. My liver enzymes have come down a bit, as my glucose numbers have as well.

In conclusion, although the risk is minimal, liver failure can occur as a result of gastric bypass surgery. I am sure that your doctors have advised you all of the potential risks but keep in mind that he/she sees many other patients and things do get past them. My advice on this would be to have liver function tests perfomed an a yearly basis after gastric bypass surgery.

I wish that some posters here would research a topic before opening their perverbial big mouths.

OP, I am sorry for the loss of your mother. Liver failure is not a fun way to go. Do not let some of these somewhat biased posters bother you.

Gastric Bypass and Liver Failure

There are other reports out there..this happend to be the most "user friendly."

And, as a former newspaper reporter I think that you entitled your post wonderfully. It certainly got my attention!!!

mulli3292 · 04-13-2008, 09:37 PM

I am sorry for your mom, My mom just had the surgery done a month ago, me and my sisters begged her not to do it , i am so scared and i have a bad feeling i never seen my mom so sick, i have been on here researching to see what this surgery is all about such as her complications she is having, she looks like hell she is so pale and weak, everything goes right through her. she told me tonight she feels she is going to die, i refuse to let her die i have a migrain from searching for hours on the computer about this nasty surgery, can someone please tell me how to help my mom. her doctor says she will adjust but i know something is not right i know my mom,, her heart palpitations are getting severe and she says it feels like the blood inside her starts to rush out of her. she cant hold anything in and is always in the ER. Is this common? please help

MiladyB · 04-13-2008, 10:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RebeccaNV

First off, I had a liver transplant 23 yrs go (next month) so this topic is of great interest to me. I have been researching gastric bypass surgery and it's affect upon the liver for several months now. Ty to the OP for bring it's attention to the forum.

I have read real, actual MEDICAL reports on the subject. Yes, liver failure can occur as a result of gastric bypass surgery. I have not yet discovered the reason (I am guessing that it may be from rapid weightloss) but I will continue to research this. The link that I posted at the end of this message states that liver failure can result many years after gbs (I will be looking for further medical evidence to substanciate this).

Many obese ppl have liver disease (NASH, NAFLD, more commonly known as fatty liver disease) and not even be aware of it. It is even more prevalent amongst those who are obese and have type II diabetes (which I have). I have an annual ultrasound of my liver and fatty liver deposits showed up on the scan two years go but this was not reflected in my bloodwork (done every 8 weeks) until this past January. The high liver enzymes also coincided with elevated glucose numbers, which prompted my dr. to discontinue my oral meds and begin insulin therapy. This has resulted in a weight gain of 22lbs, hence why I am here researching gastric bypass sugery. My liver enzymes have come down a bit, as my glucose numbers have as well.

In conclusion, although the risk is minimal, liver failure can occur as a result of gastric bypass surgery. I am sure that your doctors have advised you all of the potential risks but keep in mind that he/she sees many other patients and things do get past them. My advice on this would be to have liver function tests perfomed an a yearly basis after gastric bypass surgery.

I wish that some posters here would research a topic before opening their perverbial big mouths.

OP, I am sorry for the loss of your mother. Liver failure is not a fun way to go. Do not let some of these somewhat biased posters bother you.

Gastric Bypass and Liver Failure

There are other reports out there..this happend to be the most "user friendly."

And, as a former newspaper reporter I think that you entitled your post wonderfully. It certainly got my attention!!!

Rebecca, thank you for this information. It actually goes along with the information my surgeon and pcp told me when my liver enzymes were elevated after surgery. Their explaination for the elevated liver enzymes was the fact that I probably went into surgery with fatty liver disease due to my obesity. Also the rapid weight loss and high protein diet that we are on can often elevate the liver enzymes. I have read many times that people on here have stated that their liver enzymes have been elevated early postop. I know mine were and have slowly come down over the past 2 years...again, I was told that this really isn't all that uncommon. My surgeon does check my liver profile yearly along with my pcp checking it yearly, so I have it checked every 6 months.

From research that I have done what I have found is that if a patient has nonalcoholic fatty liver disease rapid weight loss can make make things worse.

"there is evidence to suggest that rapid weight loss ( > 1.6 kg per week) achieved by following a rigid diet can lead to the development of inflammation and fibrosis. Although it is not entirely clear how rapid weight loss and worsening liver histology are linked, this phenomenon could result from the massive liberation of free fatty acids into the bloodstream during these drastic diets.[98] This issue has become an important concern in relation to some types of bariatric procedures, such as biliopancreatic diversion and Roux-en-Y gastric bypass."

But it has also been found that with weight loss fatty liver disease can also improve and gradual weight loss is often the treatment for fatty liver disease. It appears the risk is there without the surgery from the obesity and with the surgery. The surgery could make it better or it could make it worse.

I think what we should take from this post is that this is a serious operation. We owe it to ourselves to be totally aware of what could happen before we make a decision. It is a fact that things can go wrong, very wrong and we should never turn a blind eye to that possibility. We each have to make our own personal decision about what is best for us. We need to look at our quality of life before surgery and decide if it is worth the risk of surgery. For me the surgery was the best decision I could have ever made for myself. I had numerous co-morbidities that could have taken my life at any moment and I felt this was really the only way to save my life. Basicly I had to risk my life in order to save it. But we do have to make sure that we go into this with our eyes wide open.

MiladyB · 04-13-2008, 11:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mulli3292

I am sorry for your mom, My mom just had the surgery done a month ago, me and my sisters begged her not to do it , i am so scared and i have a bad feeling i never seen my mom so sick, i have been on here researching to see what this surgery is all about such as her complications she is having, she looks like hell she is so pale and weak, everything goes right through her. she told me tonight she feels she is going to die, i refuse to let her die i have a migrain from searching for hours on the computer about this nasty surgery, can someone please tell me how to help my mom. her doctor says she will adjust but i know something is not right i know my mom,, her heart palpitations are getting severe and she says it feels like the blood inside her starts to rush out of her. she cant hold anything in and is always in the ER. Is this common? please help

No, those kinds of symptoms aren't normal. Have they done any tests on your Mom besides blood work? Has she been scoped or has she had an upper GI to try to figure out what is going on? Also have they done any kind of culture on her stool? Is she throwing up or does she have diarrhea? If she is throwing everything up she could have a stricture. She is probably so weak because she isn't getting the nutrition that she needs, since everything goes right through her. She is also probably suffering from dehydration. If you aren't getting the answers that you need from the doctor you really need to get insistent. I'm sorry to say that sometimes we really need to be our own advocate or a family member has to advocate for us. You need to demand answers from the doctor and if you don't get them you go to another doctor.