After Bariatric Surgery

In many respects, our job before and after surgery is to be your coach – making sure you understand and adapt to your new self. Especially in bariatric surgery, we want to help you through what would otherwise be a daunting weight loss process.

It is very important that you are fully aware of the procedure you will be undergoing.  Prior to surgery, Dr. Chang will explain the risks and benefits of surgery, answer your questions and prepare you for the surgical procedure ahead. Further, he will examine your lifestyle and help lay out a plan for your long-term success.

In the early period after your surgery, your physician will check you for problems like infection and bleeding. For weight loss procedures, Dr. Chang will check to see that your weight loss is appropriate and make sure that you're not losing weight too quickly or too slowly. Sometimes, there are very simple measures that can be used to regulate these problems. In addition, we will check you for nutritional problems, which may arise due to the changes in your eating habits.

For an average patient, post-op visits are made at the following intervals:

1.   initial visit
2.   pre-op visit (plus lab work)  
3.   2 weeks post-op  
4.   6 weeks post-op  
5.   3 months post-op  
6.   6 months post-op (plus lab work)  
7.   1 year post-op (plus lab work)
8.   every year thereafter (plus lab work)

Additional visits may be necessary for certain patients and certain procedures. For example, LAP-BAND and Realize Band patients may require additional visits for band fills.

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