looking for any and all information (good & bad) on my potential Dr. in Mexico

[afinegirl 0]

Hi everyone, I am currently researching having my surgery with Dr. Sergio Quinones in Tijuana... I am looking for any and all information I can on him. I would really love to hear from people who have had their surgery with this doctor and their thoughts whether good or bad.... thanks!

[Suzannesh 376]

Hi, I do not have any information on him, and I have heard very little about this doctor. I have been on this board for over 4 years now. I highly recommend Dr. Aceves. He is a highly skilled, wonderful, caring, and kind doctor. He truly cares about each one of his patients. You will hear nothing but good things about him on any board you check. There are good and bad doctors out there. You are doing the right thing, by asking questions about this doctor. I did the same thing you are doing. I will tell you that I do know that the Tijuana board is not one of the safest boards to cross. I have hear many people I know that live in San Diego say stay away from Tijuana. I wish you great success in your Weight Loss Journey. Hugs, Suzanne

[sleever10 109]

I don't have any knowledge of your surgeon either, but I can tell you that Aceves and his staff are great. I was sleeved by him last week and it was an amazing experience.

[AmandaL 6]

I haven't heard much about Dr. Q on this forum but there is a lot more discussion about him over in the forums on gastricsleeve.com.

I am having my surgery with Dr. Q on March 22, 2013 and decided on him after researching for months and months.

This is what I wrote to someone else when they asked me why I chose him...

So I am a nurse and obviously, proper treatment in healthcare is my top priority. I wanted to have a certified surgeon who actually performed the surgery in a proper medical facility that had the abilities to handle any complications that could arise. I wanted a doctor who had good outcomes and had a staff that was properly trained. I wanted someone who has done numerous surgeries so that I knew I wasn't just a guinea pig. In researching multiple MD's in Mexico, I found that Dr. Quinones met all the criteria. He is a fully licensed MD and even is licensed as being a proctor (instructor of the procedure) and he has actually taught a few of the other surgeons that perform the surgery elsewhere in Mexico. The facility is a surgical center that has an ICU and fully qualified nurses as well as they have their own private ambulance. In the event that you have any complications from the surgery you have the option to be transported in their private ambulance across the border to a hospital in San Diego, California if you choose to do so. The facility he works out of updates their equipment every 6 months so that they can insure they are using state of the art equipment.

I have talked to many different people who had surgery with him and have all had a very positive experience.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me. I will share any info I have with you!

[ATX Girl 24]

He was one of my final 4 doctors and while I believe he is a fully qualified surgeon, one of the main reasons I did NOT choose him was because of something that might seem very silly, on the surface: he doesn't use dissolving stitches.

Now, while I admit it was absolutely a consideration to NOT want to have to worry about having my stitches removed once I came back home, this was actually not just an "on-the surface" decision. What drove it was more of what it implied to me, which is that he is actually NOT state-of-the-art. I had my gall-bladder removed over 5 years ago and way back then I had dissolving stitches, so to not be using them today does not give me confidence that everything else is as modern and state of the art as they claim.

When I was researching surgeons, I found only two that were NOT using dissolving stitches: Dr Q and Dr Almanza.

Again, this may be ridiculous and silly to someone else, but these are big decisions and everyone must make a decision that they are comfortable with and for me, this just left me a bit uncomfortable. Your mileage may vary.

[AmandaL 6]

I completely understand your decision and while using regular stitches might be somewhat of a hassle for some people, I found that I actually prefer the use of regular stitches.

Also - using regular stitches vs dissolvable stitches in no way means that the doctor is not "state of the art", it is more a personal preference. In my opinion (and I haven't asked Dr. Q why he uses regular stitches vs dissolvable), I have seen far less complications from using regular stitches rather than dissolvable.

The thing about dissolvable sutures is that they don't all dissolve at the same rate. It can take upwards of 7 weeks for a suture to dissolve. Obviously, that isn't good for the skin as well sometimes the body reacts to having something foreign in it for so long and thus, infection occurs.

The other thing about using regular stitches vs dissolvable stitches is that it means at 7-10 days after surgery when they need to be removed, someone will be looking very closely at those incisions, whether its you who takes them out, a relative or a healthcare worker. Someone will be looking at the incisions and I guarantee that if there any signs of infection or any sort of problems with them, you will know right away.

And lastly - more people have reactions (sensitivities or allergic) to dissolvable sutures rather than regular ones due to the materials that are found in dissolvable.

So yes, it is a personal decision on choosing one MD over another due to the type of suture they use, however, I encourage research to be done on the different types rather than make assumptions about a doctor not being "state of the art" just because of his choice.

[ATX Girl 24]

Absolutely and like I said - some may find it silly or disagree. But for some reason, it personally made me uncomfortable and I had to follow what I felt, just as others need to do. I know of many who were very happy with Dr Q and I believe he's very qualified! I could be totally wrong on how modern and state-of-the-art his practices and facilities are because I've never been there to personally compare his to anyone else's, etc. In the end, it's just a very personal decision and you have to do what you are comfortable with. Just giving my personal opinion based on the research that I did and I obviously, I did the research I was led to for my own personal comfort level.

Oh, and for the record, that wasn't the only reason I chose to go with Dr Ortiz instead, it was just one of those final factors that tipped the scales. The big one, for me, was that Dr Ortiz is in a Center of Excellence. I have a very weak immune system and personally didn't want to take any chances being in a regular hospital with any communicable diseases. If I had a stronger immune system, that might not have been such a high factor on my list.

[afinegirl 0]

AmandaL... you said you have talked to several people who have had surgery with Dr. Q. before. Where they on here? and would you be willing to share their names so I can talk to them as well? thanks!

[Nicolanz 1,484]

I was sleeced by Almanza and the only thing I didn't like were the stitches as well. After taking them out, they looked great but a week later my incisions opened! It took a month to heal and now I'm going to have horrendous scars! I'll take the scars over being morbidly obese, but still something to take into consideration.

[AmandaL 6]

Absolutely! I will private message you with names and phone numbers when I get home from work!

[euvette 1]

I used Dr Quinones 11-30-2012 and had a great experience with him and his staff.

[MsVetRN 41]

I, personally, used Dr Almanza last year (2011) and though my experience was good and I have been very successful, I would recommend Dr Quinones. I say this because I feel from everything I have read and the several patients I have talked to about their experience with him, that the aftercare and the treatment of the patients far exceeds that of jerusalem clnic. its just craziness over there. As far as the "dissolvable stitches" being a determining factor...I mean...really?

[ATX Girl 24]

As far as the "dissolvable stitches" being a determining factor...I mean...really?

I know some people may find it silly (and I stated as much in my post about it), but I also believe we all have to go with what makes us comfortable. And it certainly wasn't THE determining factor (the Center of Excellence was), but it was one of the factors I considered. And you may not agree or think it's a big deal at all, but I may find something that bothers you silly, right? That's what makes us all unique people!

I have just seen more than a few people saying that their incisions ended up opening up again shortly after taking them out and that's just not something I personally want to deal with.

[Nicolanz 1,484]

Nobody said it was a determining factor, just a factor.

[MsVetRN 41]

She said it was "one of the MAIN REASONS". After being on several Sleeve FB pages and several Sleeve Forums for over a year and a half, I have found that "Center of Excellence" or not...(which is a bunch of BS, I know from being a nuse for 25 years), I would estimate that at least 75% of folks have their incisions not only open, but at least one of them will become infected, oozing, etc, , whether it is done in the UK, the US, Mexico, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Japan....you get the point. It has nothing to do with the facility or the surgeon. A lot has to do just with how your body responds to foreign objects, i.E., sutures dissolvable or not.

Lord.you guys are sure on the defensive. Relax.