PreOp weight loss?

[shannonlarson209 3]

I'm meeting the surgeon on Wednesday and I'm nervous as to how much weight I will be asked to lose before surgery. What have you been asked to lose?

[_Kate_ 2,224]

I was asked to stay on the liver diet for two weeks before surgery (I did it for 18 days in the end). My surgeon asked me to do it to shrink the liver rather than lose weight so didn't set a target.

[jane13 2,256]

@shannonlarson209 - I think it depends on your health and there may also be guidelines you cannot pass depending on your insurance. I wasn't given a specific amount to lose just a pre-op diet to follow just knew it was going to be a two-week thing. I started that, 90% or so, as soon as I finished my req nutrition classes. When I got the surgical visit I could've actually gone into surgery within about 9 days.

call your doctors office and ask, cant hurt.

[Margie122 845]

I can't remember if I was asked to lose 15 or 20lbs. I ended up losing more. I'm pretty sure it was 15lbs...it was about 5% of my current weight at the time I was weighed.

[brown_eyed_girl 5]

So far I haven't been asked to lose any weight. I was just told that my surgeon requires that I don't gain weight before my surgery. During my nutrition classes, the dietitian stated that depending on how much weight I do or don't lose pre-op will determine the likelihood of me being successful after surgery.

[Djmohr 6,965]

I was not asked to lose any specific number. I was simply asked to start changing habits and the weight would fall into place.

I was asked to do the liver shrink diet for 10 days before surgery and I lost 13lbs.

Then of course gained all that back being in the hospital for 2 nights.

It took about a week before I lost that weight and started seeing new weight come off.

[vixen85 59]

I wasn't required to lose any. My insurance required that I not gain in the 3 month program before surgery though. 1 week into preop diet and have lost 6lbs. So I am 18 lbs down from my high weight this fall.

[Justin Curtis 78]

My surgeon did not ask me to lose any weight on pre op diet. He put me on all liquid diet for 2 weeks to shrink my liver it wasn't that bad and i managed to lose over 30lbs in 2 weeks. I was so stoked going into surgery with that kind of loss it took me out of the 5's and into 4's!

[Proud2BMe 1,016]

It's usually patients whose weight is considered too risky for surgery that are required to lose a specific amount of weight. Also, some surgeons won't operate if the patient is larger than 400 lbs as they claim that the instruments aren't big enough for such people. I know in my area I checked and was told that I still qualified as I was 370 but if I gained weight and broke 400 that he wouldn't take me on as a patient. However, I ended up going to Tijuana even though I didn't gain anymore weight.

[Steve Puckett 33]

I was asked to lose 38 lbs. to show resolve AND shrink the liver so that my insurance would cover the procedure. I'll be damned if I was going to let the opportunity of surgery slip by.... I lost 64 lbs. !!!!

[shannonlarson209 3]

Thank you for all the feedback. I am required to lose 25 pounds. Not bad!