help me narrow down mexico surgeon choice

I had Dr. Zapata in Monterrey and he was great. Hospital was very nice and all his staff were nice. I had no problems at all. With airfare my cost was 8,000. Donna

Hi, I am having my surgery the same day as you....With Dr. Aceves....Everything I have researched has come up with excellentency!!!!! I am so excited and looking forward to starting my journey! Maybe I will meet you there! Keep me posted!
Lisa

My doctors are at the Obesity Goodbye clinic in Tijuana: Dr. Ponce de Leon and Dr. Verboonan, we call him "Dr. V". They are fantastic and if you want to go back for fills... you just pay for the flouroscopy fee... they meet you at the airport and everything.

Hi,
I had my surgery with Dr.Aceve's Dec 6,2007.I have had NO problems.Excellent care and would recommend him & his staff to anyone.
I just got back from my first fill with him couple days ago.

You can pm me if need more info.

Good Luck on your weight loss journey

Jen

Hi, I just got back from Mexico--was banded 1/25/08 by Dr. Ariel Ortiz in TJ--it was the best decision I have ever made. Oprah Winfrey's production crew were there that day to do a feature on Dr. Ortiz / Lap Band surgery in Mexico and I listened to Dr. Ortiz (what a looker) be interviewed. The Oprah show will be broadcasting that soon, though, so keep an eye out.

Oh, and I went back to work yesterday (1/28/08) and am doing very well--just a little gas pain in the shoulder which is typical and responds well to a heating pad and Gas-x. But I have a sedentary job, mind you.

I was very very impressed with the quality of facilities, care, etc. Dr. Ortiz "wrote the book" on the Lap Band and it's *all* he and his team do---thousands of surgeries and very low complication rate. I would wholeheartedly recommend them. I also am self-pay cuz I'm "not obese enough" for the states Whole shabang cost 8000. You can go back there for fills if you want (included in the cost) or have a local fill dr. of your choice. Fill centers USA are opening up locations all around the US, and they are the "preferred" stateside fill / aftercare provider that Dr. Ortiz refers his patients to (if they can't come back to Mex).

If ANYONE has any ?s you can feel free to personal message me.

Best of luck.

I had dr Rodriguez in Juarez, which is right across the border from El Paso. In a brand new hospital that looks like a 5 star resort. the whole process was so easy with Belite taking me thru every step of the way. I had the surgery on Dec 5, 2007 and still get calls from the girls at Belite. I spend 3 mights in the hospital, I went alone and never once felt alone, the language barrier is sometimes confusing, but we made it work. Go to FILLCENTERS USA, and find a fill center, I know I live in Florida for 8 months during the winter and have a fill center 30 miles away in St Pete's but when I go back to Wisconsin for 4 months there is not one any where close.

OPRAH was there ?
WOW im surprised ? She's so anti WLS , I am betting this is not going to be a good story if i know her and WLS , she's NEVER had a good spin on WLS her shows ALWAYS have a negative light on them . should be interesting to see .
Thanks for the heads up on that .
Mindy

Dr. Rumbault. You cannot find a better surgeon. I just had my gall bladder out and the surgeon said she was going to look around while she was in there. She said the band looked great. In fact a bariatric surgeon came in while she was checking things out and made the comment that it was very nicely done.

Before I went to Dr. Rumbault (2 1/2 years ago) I did a lot of research and I could not find anyone that had had a bad experience with him. He really is that good.

Good luck, whatever you decide to do.

Dr. Arturo Rodriguez in Monterrey is an absolute dear. His entire staff is genuinely caring and great! I went back last week for a fill and had exactly the same feeling with both Dr. R and Gina. I will also say that I got more personable care there than with anything I have ever had done here. If you look on the realize band site--those are his patients!

rickysgirl,

It MIGHT be helpful if you provided the surgeon's name. However, there are a lot of people who get their surgery in the US who come home with infections. They are not always the fault of the doctor, and they certainly aren't the fault of a country.

Thank you for that Snowbird. It always amazes me when someone pops up on a thread with the purpose of causing fear, then disappears.

Anyone who wants to research doctors in Mexico should read WasaBubbleButt's link. It contains a tremendous amount of research and facts. If you want the real scoop, and really educate yourself on what this is all about, take some time and read it.

I had my band done by dr.daniel huacuz. i know he is an excellent doctor. he also did surgery on my shoulder last year, and last weekend i had plastic surgery on my arms and my face. im very pleased with the results. as always the care is so outstanding. he has a private clinic with cozy rooms and private nurses. you never feel alone. he spends a lot of time with each patient and provides you with follow up care. i go back to have my stiches out in 3 weeks. ill get my fill then too. i know there are many good doctors in mexico , but i cant imagine getting better care than i do with dr. huacuz....... i want to see the oprah special. that will be interesting. one of the ladies i work with had her band done by dr.ortiz and now it is eroded. she goes back to have it removed.... i hope they give her a discount or a free replacement.......... that would be really good for doctors to replace the bands if they erode...i just hope i never have that problem. i think you should call and talk to the different doctors and see how you feel. i tell all my friends to go to my doctor since i think he is safe and caring, but everyone still needs to decide for themselves. good luck..........

Very interesting the differing opinions about going to Mexico & the "scary" stories about infection! I was banded 01/26 by Dr. Aceves & I think that he & his staff were incredible. My nephew paid almost $18,000 to be banded here in the US last year and got a major infection!

I think if your going to make negative statements like this you should specify WHICH Dr Ortiz . There are MORE Than ONE ya know !
SO you might want to specify when making negative statments . NOt that im against the negatives if they are true , i think they are an important part of the research process but I think its important to make sure the RIGHT doctors are being spoken about an accurate facts.

Mindy

Ok i think i might have put my foot in my mouth? LOL someone correct me if I am wrong . I THOUGHT there are 2 Dr Ortiz ? I could be wrong ?
Is there one or two ? If im wrong it wont be the first time. And im sorry for the comment ! LOL
Mindy