Decisions, decisions...

[Plumbum 0]

Hi,

I am a newbie and just joined today. I am looking for more information to make up my mind on things. I think I have pretty much decided I will get the lapband. Now I have to decide if I should bite the very expensive bullet and do it here (Insurance won't cover it at all) or if I should go to Mexico and do it there. I have been reading a lot about Dr. Ortiz and am considering him. I would love to hear from some of you that used him and your experiences. My concern is the after care here and what happens if something goes wrong. I know about Fill Centers USA. Has anybody used them? Any advice, comments?

[thinasiwant 0]

Hi Plumbum

Im in the same boat....cash pay and looking for the best dr. with the best price....I am going with Mexico and fill centers for fills. I am relatively healthy...no meds etc....and why do I want to pay more just to be in the u.s. The mexico drs. have done 1ooos of cases and I feel good about it. Domestic I found from 12,000 to the sales on the lap band talk sponsor areas at 4995. I will be doing it with the Bariatric group in October....they will honor the sale price till the end of the year. I just refuse to spend $7005 extra bucks. Already some of the other offices are trying to use scare tactics to lure me back. Good luck to you and keep us posted!

[pr8453 0]

Hi Plumbum! I live in Gainesville, GA and see on your profile you are in Canton, GA. I am going to MX on 9-9-09 for my lapband. I had originally been trying since Jan to get approval from my insurance but no luck so I finally decided to bite the bullet and self pay but the office I was working with - had no discount for self pay so it was going to be $21K and I just couldn't see doing that is when I started searching on the internet to see if I could find any drs that did offer discounts for self pay. I had no idea that MX was even a choice and my initial thought was I would be too scared to go to MX for an operation but then the prices were so much more affordable that I just started to think that was the way for me to go. I called my original dr office in Atlanta and asked if they would do fills for patients who received their band outside the US and they said as long as it was an FDA approved band and you brought your surgery report with you that they would. So the first visit they said would be around $300 because it would involve a Dr consult and then after it would be less for just the fills. The Dr name is Michael Smith - located in Alpharetta-Laparoscopic & Endoscopic Surgery Institute, P.C.

770-500-3660. Let me know if you get a different response from them because I am counting on them. There is a Fill Center USA in Roswell and they do have floroscopy available but I would really like to see a Dr at least the first time.

[greytz 4]

I have heard a lot of good things about Mexico. I was fortunate and did not have to think about that route and I have great follow up care. You may want to go through some of the threads and find out what is being said about it. I would think the most important thing is to find good follow up care before you decide on the surgery. They say it is a lot cheaper there for self-pay.

[FailureIsntAnOption 0]

I went to Mexico for surgery (not Dr. Otriz). I was pretty darn nervous about it too. Once I arrived at the hospital all my fears left me. Everything went as smooth as silk and I was actually pleasantly surprised. Just be sure to investigate the surgeon thoroughly and find past patients to talk with.

[pr8453 0]

I went to Mexico for surgery (not Dr. Otriz). I was pretty darn nervous about it too. Once I arrived at the hospital all my fears left me. Everything went as smooth as silk and I was actually pleasantly surprised. Just be sure to investigate the surgeon thoroughly and find past patients to talk with.

I am scheduled for surgery with Dr Pompa. I have found a few people on lbtalk that have been banded or got a sleeve and all had positive results but I am still a little nervous to be going out of country to a dr I have never met to have surgery and then fly back to GA 3 days later! I am glad to hear your experience in MX was good- I am really just looking forward to getting it done- I start my pre-op diet on Monday the 24th.

[Plumbum 0]

Thanks everybody for your replies. I went to my PCP yesterday to have the diet surgery conversation. He was pretty supportive until I said Mexico. He was totally against it. He said he was going to do some research and try to find a reasonable alternative. Honestly though, I think he is just not very informed and thinks Mexico means lying on somebody's kitchen table and getting butchered with the chickens running around.

[thamilton 0]

I was fortunate that my insurance approved mine, but I have yet to hear of anyone having an unpleasant experience by going to Mexico. My friend that I work with had hers done in Mexico by Dr. Ortiz and she raved about her experience. It was 6 years ago and she looks fantastic! Don't let the doctors scare you out of going to Mexico, listen to the people who have actually been there, done that and now have the t-shirt....lol! Good luck to you!

[Catherine55 43]

I went to my PCP yesterday to have the diet surgery conversation. He was pretty supportive until I said Mexico. He was totally against it. He said he was going to do some research and try to find a reasonable alternative. Honestly though, I think he is just not very informed and thinks Mexico means lying on somebody's kitchen table and getting butchered with the chickens running around.

My OBGYN was the same way when I told her. But, I researched my doctor and also talked to two of his patients, so I did not have the same concerns. I had my surgery on 10/23/08 with Dr. Roberto Rumbaut. He is also banded, so I felt like he had a great perspective. He has also done more than 6,000 of these procedures and is well respected in the field, and I found that very reassuring.

Dr. Rumbaut was able to hook me up with the doctors at NYU who wrote Fighting Weight with Mohammed Ali's daughter. I arranged my first post-op appointments before I even had surgery, which made me feel much better.

The hospital he uses (Ortiz probably goes here as well, though I'm not 100% on that) is amazing -- brand spanking new and state of the art. I was really impressed. Also, since their business thrives on private pay patients, the level of care was OUTSTANDING. I never had to wait even a whole 60 seconds after pushing the nurse call button to have someone there to help me. They also made up a bed in my (private, brand new, gorgeous) hospital room so that my mother could spend the night there with me.

I can't speak highly enough about Dr. Rumbaut or the care I received. If you aren't set on Ortiz, you might consider him as well. BTW, I put photos of the hospital on my blog (at the very beginning), so feel free to take a look if you are interested!

Catherine

[FailureIsntAnOption 0]

How funny! My PCP gave me a complete physical prior to me going to Mexico for my surgery. When I asked his opinion he said he has many patients who travel out of the country for surgery. He actually helped me investigate the surgeon that I used.