Medications and DS

[WitchySar 244]

I am pretty sure I'm going to choose the sleeve for my WLS but I research the crap out of everything. I already know I can't have RNY because certain medications I have to take can't be taken after bypass. I also asked about meds after sleeve and someone linked a very useful list and the meds I take can be taken after the sleeve. Now it's time to verify with the DS. I can't seem to find a list of meds that can and can't be taken after DS. Is it the same as bypass or sleeve, or different from both?

Specifically I'm worried because I have severe allergies, I have to take 3 allergy meds a day (zyrtec, claritin, and allegra) just to be able to leave my house, and my allergist told me to always have benedryl on hand in case of a severe reaction. Most of those meds were on the *do not take* lists for bypass that I've found. This worries me.

[James Marusek 5,244]

I am wondering if this is a conversation that you should be having with your surgeon's office. After RNY surgery, I was restricted from certain medicines for a few days but then given the green light to begin to use them again. I was completely off my diabetes medicines the day I left the hospital 2 days after surgery. I am over 3 years post-op RNY gastric bypass surgery, and this condition has remained in remission ever since. About 2 weeks after surgery I took myself off all my high blood pressure medicines because I no longer needed them. I periodically tests my blood pressure and blood sugar and I am fine. Because I have asthma, I use Advair. I take one puff in the morning and one at night. Over the last year, I found the condition has greatly decreased so I cut myself down to 1 puff per day and feel fine. After surgery I was restricted from all blood thinners (such as aspirin or in your case zyrtec). This was because I had to take a prescription blood thinner to prevent blood clots from forming. (This would apply to most surgeries) I was off these blood thinners after about a week. So perhaps the questions should be how long is the restrictions of certain medicines and what are alternatives that you can take in the interim,

[OutsideMatchInside 10,166]

@@WitchySar

Ask your Dr.

DS has more malabsorption than the Bypass, so there will be no way to know how much of oral medicine you are really absorbing. The benefit of the sleeve, is there is no malabsorption so you can take medicines and not worry about the doses.

[Postop 411]

You can pretty much take anything.

[WitchySar 244]

I don't meet with the surgeon until July 21st so I wanted to do some research before hand.

[RickM 1,747]

Basically, the DS is the same as the sleeve from a medication perspective - the bypass has specific structural problems that contraindicate some medications (NSAIDs being the biggie) that doesn't apply to sleeve based procedures. The DS has problems absorbing some time release medications depending upon the time release mechanism used. That's something to discuss with the surgeon and to research the specific medication. IIRC, those that are activated in the stomach work fine while those depending upon transit time through the active intestine don't work so well.

[WitchySar 244]

That's very helpful. Thank you for explaining the differences.