Horrible experience... I cant sleep or eat... :(

incredible

Member
Jul 9, 2006
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http://www.dr1.com/forums/living/60760-my-best-friend-santo-domingo-dying-please-help.html

Well I helped send my best friend to receive Gastric Bypass and he went to
Abel Gonzalez clinic on Lincoln in Santo Domingo... as reccomeded in the thread above...

Here's the horrific news..

He was scheduled this Tuesday and received a call, out of thhe blue, on Thursday saying if he didn't go Thursday, he could die because he was developing an enlarged Pancreas and was showing signs of Diabetes.
Yes he is overweight but only 29 years old and otherwise genrally healthy except for his snoring problems and a case of asthma..

I found that strange in that they rushed him in so fast... Without any prior notice not even a day!

Maybe they had a cancellation? This got me upset because he was unable to take pre op medication to prevent infections,
so I called him everyday and monitored his progress with his girlfriend and sister who are young and not the most educated!

Anyway, he had Gastric Bypass surgery on Thursday afternoon and most reccomendation's say the patient must stay for 5-7 days, in patient care because it is such serious surgery.

Well they discharged him on late Sunday Night! ONLY AFTER 3 DAYS! :(
Well, i figured he must be doing really well... or in the back of my mind i wondered whether they wanted to cut costs on the inpatient, post op care... :(

Well I received a call on tuesday that my friend was in Pain!
I told him to go back to the clinic asap!

When i checked back yesterday late afternoon, Wednesday, I find out, HE HAD 2 additional operations and is in critical condition! :(

HE DEVELOPED AN INFECTION AND HAS LEAKAGE...

This is the kind of stuff that happens down there, man....
This is one of the best Clinics in Santo Domingo and the medical odds of leakage is 2% and of infection is 2& and he has both problems! The odds of bth thigs going wrog must be 0000.5%

Now, if the infection doesn't go away they will operate again and he could die, they made his poor girlfriend sign waivers in the event of death already! :(

Well is there anything I can do besides making sure he is monitored by the Owner and top MD there Dr. Abdel Gonzales himself?

Please, help me out if you have any advice, I just want him to live and don't care about the money!

Incredible



I thought this was strange maybe they were
 

2LeftFeet

Bronze
Dec 1, 2006
1,147
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Gastric Bypass surgery is still surgery. It can have complications. My co-worker had the surgery (NYC) and 6 months later he developed a complication and almost died. His mother had the surgery and she immediately developed a complication( like your friend) and she almost died. They both pulled through. These things can happen anywhere not just in the DR.

Is he stable enough to be brought to Florida?
Think positive thoughts. I hope he gets better.
 

Bronxboy

Well-known member
Jul 11, 2007
14,107
595
113
Leakages and Infections happen in operations

Hi:

I had colon surgery to remove a cancerous polyp a few months ago.

Since I am diabetic, the area that was linked back (small intestine and large intestine) leaked and as a result i caught an infection. Diabetics tens to heal slower than non-diabetics. Well they wanted to go back in and place the intensines in a bag outside my body until it healed. I ask for an alternative and the alternative was to place a drainage bag where the infection was and was treated with strong antibiotics.

Thanks god the alternative worked.

I wish your friend the best but unfortunately diabetics heal slower.

All the luck.;)
 

cobraboy

Pro-Bono Demolition Hobbyist
Jul 24, 2004
40,964
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My ex wife is an anesthesiologist and did a lot of work in bariatric surgery.

It is very, very serious stuff. Often the patients already have health that is highly compromised.

The % of mortality is very high.

I wish your friend a thorough recovery.
 

Spicedwine

New member
Apr 25, 2006
568
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My prayers are with your friend, this is very serious surgery, but do not be surprised at the will of the body and the power of asking for help by prayer. Think positive thoughts and ask the tough questions,,
 
Feb 7, 2007
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I invite anyone to add to this who has had success in getting treatment outside the DR, since it could be valuable information for others.

While I was living in the USA few years back, I was visiting Argentina almost every two weeks on business. At about that time, time came to do a follow up open heart surgery (first one was when I was 6 years old) which should be done at about that age of my life and I did not want to do that in Europe and in the USA I would have to pay for it big money (USA insurance did not cover - pre-existing condition exclusion).

I was recommended Fundacion Favaloro in Buenos Aires, because all their surgeons are doing their residency in Cleveland Clinic (one of the best cardiac centers in the USA).

The surgery was a fraction of the cost of what it would cost in the USA , and though my back-from-home insurance would cover surgery in Europe, I decided to do it in Argentina after having been to consultations to the clinic several times and seeing the high professionalism of all the staff.

Everything went perfect. The attention is awesome and the clinic is on level with any private hospital in the USA. The surgeon was the very Chief of the hospital and best cardio surgeon in Argentina.

For anyone who cannot go to Europe, USA, Canada, etc for heart surgery and don't trust the system in the DR, I recommend this clinic.
 

Bryanell

Bronze
Aug 9, 2005
694
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Post Bariatric Surgey Complications

There has been recently a lot of interest and activity in the medical field in the matter of Post Bariatric Surgey Complications (as opposed to side effects) following research and reports being published in a number of professional journals occasioned by an alrming number of deaths of post BS patients.

A brief Google search for Bariatric Surgey Complications will bring you more articles than you can shake a short stick at. As has been mentioned here in this thread although the operations are conducted without opening the abdominal cavity, but through small incisions (laparoscopic) it is still major surgery with all the attendant risks even under the best possible circumstances.

I've always heard a lot of good things about Abel Gonzalez' Advanced Medical Centre, although there's a lot of rivalry between them and Clinica Abreu and the OB & GYN Clinic on Independencia.

You'd need some pretty strong evidence to back up a medical malpractice claim even in this country, and anyone thinking in that direction should take some very professional advice before even voicing accusations in public.

Anyone who might need advice in that respect can PM me - confidentiality guaranteed and I'm not selling anything Mr Moderator.
 

Talldrink

El Mujeron
Jan 7, 2004
2,209
42
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Im a bit confused - even after skimming through the other thread. This already lived in DR and thats why he had the surgery there?

If he lived in the States, clearly he could have gotten his insurance to pay for the surgery b/c of the other health issues related to his weight.

What's the story?