I'm new....just wanted to warn you

[straber 0]

Hi, I've never posted before but I lurked for quite a long time.

I wanted to wait till my anger subsided but I just wanted to tell you all that I had a horrible experience with Dr. Joya in Puerto Vallarta. I was banded, and then unbanded 3 months later because of a bad port infection. I was a lower BMI patient (barely 35 at surgery) with no health issues except some extra weight. I did years of research and thought it was a smart decision to go forward with the band. My problems started right as I woke up from surgery with a "bleeder" that had to be fixed and they charged me 1800 dollars for. My infection showed up very soon after and it spread to the point that I was weak, dizzy and just sick all the time. I decided to get it removed because my gut was telling me that the infection was just never going to heal.

The band is a great tool and I wish you all the best of success with it. My only purpose for writing this is to tell you of the experience I had and for you to choose your Doctor wisely. I'd do everything I could to stay in the states if at all possible. It's really scary to have things go so wrong and have your Doctor be so far away. There are great Doctors in Mexico I'm sure, but I just wanted to give you a head's up on mine.

Oh, and thanks to Penni.....she let me stay with her (even though I never met her) after I PM'd her asking for advice. She hooked me up with her Doctor in CA for the removal.

All is well now but I just feel it was the right thing to do to at least tell you guys that there are alot of Doctors out there, but you may want to steer clear of Dr. Joya in Puerto Vallarta.

Sorry this is so long....hope I did it right. :biggrin1:

Sheila

[princess_n_thep 2]

Sorry to hear of your experience. Do you have plans for another surgery or will you try it on your own for awhile. Some experiences are great in Mexico and some are downright horrible for sure. It is definitely the luck of the draw and a gamble in my opinion.

I wish you well and hope you have success in your journey in the future.

[straber 0]

Thanks for responding Jenna. I'm pretty much too scared for anymore surgeries now so I've just been doing it with diet and exercise like the rest of the world. LOL I had to hire a trainer to make sure I do it but it's been wonderful so far. You've had great results I see, I'm really happy for you!!!

Sheila

[Magic 0]

My dear, sorry to hear about your sufferings. I really was moved whenI read your post, casue I pictured myself in the same situation. All the best to you, and look to the bright side, at least you are living, and in good health now, who knows maybe the infection would've gotten much worse and things would've been different. All the best to you..

[Telly 4]

Hello Straber,

I'm happy you are doing well now. It's sad to hear of stories such as yours. More so when the complications occur and the surgery happened to be performed abroad or outside of the US. I understand what you mean about not having a local doctor to help you.

I, on the other hand did have my procedure performed in Monterrey, Mexico by a great surgeon. A patient that I met on the day of pre-ops had complications after her surgery, which was performed right after mine. She had breathing problems coming out of anesthesia, she vomitted alot, had horrible gas pains and went home in excruciating pain, weeks later discovered an infection at her port site. Her infection remained for a few months. She phoned our doc. He sent a prescription to her for antibiotics and followed up with her weekly. She finally healed.

Recently, she made an appt with a local doc to have her first fill. To her dismay, the doc discovered that her port flipped. They tried an "L" shaped needle to get to the port, but to no avail. After spending $299.00 for an eval with no fill, she contacted the doctor about her flipped port. The doc was more than happy to revise or correct the flipped port at no extra charge. She only had to pay for the flight. Since then she's alive and well and with a fill. She's still losing. She's happy and her problems were addressed by a doctor who cared.

So yes I do understand that complications can occur but we have to do our research on our docs before we use them.

[straber 0]

You guys are just so supportive....thanks for that!! It's been a hard road but like you said, I'm thankful I'm healthy now. I was sorta afraid to post my story for fear people would think I was Doctor bashing....but seems like I worried for nothing. Just wanted to be honest and try to help other people that still may be deciding.

Glad your friend was taken care of Telly. My local Doc here just had no experience with lapband problems so he was sorta clueless on what to do. That's the bad thing about an experienced Doc...they may be good at the band, but not so good if things go wrong.

Take care you guys

Sheila

[Bettina 0]

Telly your avatar cracks me up!!!

[NeenBand 7]

I'm so sorry this happened to you. And at the risk of getting people ticked off at me, agree that no one should have it done in Mexico unless they live very close by it. I just think of my own trips back and forth to my doctor when issues have come up, or for support meetings, etc. and can't imagine living hundreds or thousands of miles away.

The band needs so much supervision by the doctor, I think it's not the wisest choice to go to Mexico for this surgery.

[straber 0]

ya, it's easy for me to say now that I'm bandless :think but I'd for sure have surgery closer to home. I set up aftercare in advance here in Vegas but he just wasn't familiar with port infections and tried the antibiotic route for far too long. It was me and my own research that led me to just want it out. I've come to the conclusion that there are ALOT more problems than are being "reported" for people like me who researched this for years. I had such a bad bleeder that I needed a few bags of blood and my surgical report says "no complications". I'm sure it's not just in Mexico, but I can only speak of my experience.