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Ellis establishes center for gastric bypass surgery
by Matt Volke (Gazette Reporter)

Increasingly common procedures help in severe obesity cases

Debbie Ainsworth is nearly one-third of her former self.

For 25 years, the Schenectady woman didn't date, let alone leave the house, because of her extreme obesity.

She said she didn't think any-one would want to date her, with her weight being more than 300 pounds, and she felt like people glared at her. It was also just hard to get up and move around.

"I wanted to go out and meet somebody and have fun," she said. "But there's that fear of rejection."

Her physical health was deteri­orating with her self-esteem. She tried diet after diet, only to lose weight and gain it back.

It wasn't until she decided to have gastric bypass surgery that she was able to keep it off.

The Ellis Hospital nurse is one of dozens in the area who have had the surgery in recent months.

The demand has grown so much in recent years, with several celebrities having the surgery and an increase in availability, that E 1 7 lis Hospital has created an entire center dedicated to the procedure.

The Ellis Hospital Bariatric Care Center, located on the cor­ner of Rosa Road and Fulton Ave­nue, opened earlier this month as a central location for those con­sidering the operation.

The chairs in the waiting room are wide, as are the doors and beds in the exam rooms. Bathrooms are custom-fitted for larger people.' Christine Spellman, a nurse at the Bariatric Center,. said standard hospital beds don't usually hold more than 250 pounds. "When the patient comes here they don't have to worry about the bed tipping, or feeling uncomfortable," she said.

The staff of two nurses and one medical coordinator have all had the surgery. They were chosen to give patients a staff with personal experience and knowledge.

Spellman lost 130 pounds after she had the. surgery six years ago and said the early signs of diabetes that she was having cleared.

"I think that's why we were chosen," Spellman said.. "We understand what it's like."

Insurance often covers the bypass, but there must be a condition proving the need, such as diabetes, high blood. pressure or other negative effects from obesity.

For Ainsworth, now 48, the surgery was about improving her lifestyle and for cosmetic reasons.

She was married at 19 and divorced at 23. After the divorce she focused her energy on raising her two children.

"Being an at home, low self-esteem, single mother for 25 years, that's what I did," Ainsworth said. "When you're overweight, you don't want to do anything but lay around and eat. You become a homebody."

It wasn't a hard decision to get the bypass because of all the potential changes to her quality of life, she said.

But the changes weren't without sacrifice.

She had severe depression and pain from the operation for several months.

"It was severe, severe depres­sion and pain for two to three months," she said. "I lost food, and I lost everything. It's a major, major life change."

She couldn't eat anything but pureed foods for 10 weeks. But she said she couldn't get it past her lips, and only consumed fluids.

"When I had the surgery, I wondered why I had done it," she said.

It didn't take long for her to remember why. Within weeks she was rapidly losing weight. She lost 175 pounds in a little more than a year, and has maintained her weight of 135 pounds for four months.

With some exercise and diet change, she says she feels like she's 20 years younger.

The operation creates a pouch out of a portion of the stomach.

Ellis offers two surgical methods for the procedure. One is an open surgery that makes a larger incision in the stomach, and the stomach pouch is made with staples.

The other procedure is lapa­roscopic and uses several small incisions. Small surgical devices go in through the incisions and create the pouch.

The, pouch can.. only handle small portions of food at a time, which must be chewed thoroughly. The acids and enzymes that aid in digestion are also redirected, which slows digestion further.

Both types of gastric bypass have the same effects, but the laparoscopic procedure is becoming more popular because of a quicker healing time, said Dr. Terence Clarke, the surgeon at the Bariatric Care Center who does the laparoscopic surgeries.

CENTER CHIEF

Dr. Oscar Lirio has been per-forming the surgery in area hospitals, including St. Clare's, since 1979. He performs the open method, which he said is better for the severely obese. He has performed more than 1,500 bypasses.

Lirio headed the creation of the bariatric center. He said it's easier for patients to have a central location where they can get all their medical needs in one location.

"I realized this should be an institutionalized care," Lirio said.

To be eligible, patients must also go through a consultation,, get a letter of recommendation from their primary care physician, clear a psychological exam, and be prepared for possible surgeries afterward.

There's also the major lifestyle change of not being able to eat as much and having to take a variety of vitamins and supplements.

"The conception they can eat anything and still lose weight is common and false," Clarke said.

Some days she can eat more than others, but a tablespoon of food fills her up.

She also has had some cosmetic surgery to remove varicose veins, and she may have a tummy tuck to remove the lose skin that remains, which is common.

But she said all the pain and sacrifice have been worth it.

Last summer, she met her fian­ce. She said she wouldn't have met him without the operation.

"You look good, you feel good," Ainsworth said. "I wish I did it 20 years ago."

The center is averaging be­ tween seven and 10 cases a month since the fall, and Lirio said he expects that number to increase.

"We haven't even hit our maxi-mum," Lirio said. "I think we'll need another surgeon in the long run."

Ellis Hospital has had lower than expected growth and a decline in its budget surplus for the year, and it has been looking for ways to drive and create revenue, said hospital spokeswoman Donna Evans. One of the ways to create revenue, Evans said, is to grow services such as the Bariatric Care Center.

Albany Medical Center , however, performs more than 300 gastric bypass operations yearly, said Nicole Pitaniello, a hospital spokeswoman.