posted
I was reading through these posts and just had to put my two cents in. The doctor that everyone is talking about is only about 3 hrs from my home. I had actually consulted with him for tubal reversal, but chose not to let him do it.(Acutally, I would not let that man near my tubes w/a ten foot pole.) I then waited three years, found Dr. Berger and drove 6 hours to N.C. from Kentucky to let,who I believe to be the best, perform my surgery. It always pays to research Dr's and find one you are completely comfortable with.
[ March 04, 2005, 04:28 PM: Message edited by: Gary S Berger MD ]
posted
That is totally the tone I got from his site, like he was just putting down every other way that wasn't his way.
I like Dr. Berger's site, credentials are incredible, and stats were a math class that I actually liked in college. I cannot wait to meet Dr. Berger, and get my TR underway, now just pray the money comes in.......
Thanks, Kem
[ March 04, 2005, 04:44 PM: Message edited by: Gary S Berger MD ]
posted
No problem, girl... I saw his website, too and compared the two. And the more I read, the more I realized that comparing them was NOT a good idea - BECAUSE their methods are different.
I will say this... the one thing i didn't like about the other doctor's website was the "bashing tone" I got from it. It was as if he were insulting other professionals who do this same surgery. I didn't like that.
The main thing that I remembered was another thing my midwife told me. Basically she said that even if my doctor didn't look at me like a human, which he did... even if he didn't, though... he certainly looks at me like a number. And statistics are IMPORTANT. A doctor is NOT going to perform surgery on a patient who is NOT a good candidate - it won't make THEM look good. So that being said, even if Dr. Berger doesn't care about us as individuals (and just read the posts - we all know he DOES care), he certainly cares about his reputation & statistics, and I don't believe he would put his rep on the line by performing a paticular type of surgery that isn't successful.
Again - ALL THIS IS JUST MY HUMBLE OPINION.
Ain't it all enough to make your head go VVVVRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!?
**hugs** Kem
[ March 04, 2005, 04:35 PM: Message edited by: Gary S Berger MD ]
posted
Thanks for the reply, Dr. Berger, and Kem, i have watched the video and honestly i was very impressed. I have not read a message that did not praise Dr. Berger, CH, and his staff. I already have my mind made up, i want Dr. Berger to perform my TR, i have read the testimonials and seen pictures of the babies. it just seemed like that other webpage was so negative towards others, without really talking about what he did for his patients. anyway, i was just wondering about those claims, but you make a lot of sense, Kem, and thanks for writing back. I cannot wait to have my TR and I know that i will be in the best of hands.
posted
Thanks for your post. We would not comment on another doctor or the information on another website since we cannot verify the accuracy and have no knowledge of what other doctors do in their facilities. We can tell you about what we do, however, and the outcomes we see using techniques pioneered by Dr. Berger.
The stent does not damage the tubes, and it ensures that they are open so a dye test is not necessary. You can see how this looks on our website at http://www.tubal-reversal.net/tubal_anastomosis_implantation.htm . There is an illustration showing the placement of the stent. The stent technique is the best approach in our opinion to avoid any doubt about tubal patency.
When Dr. Berger first began doing reversal surgery in 1976, he did use a microscope - and we still have one in the facility. In our opinion, however, the microscopic loupes allow better visualization during all phases of the procedure. With the microscope, the machine must be repositioned several times during the procedure to allow for adequate visualization. This is not only unnecessary, but it causes longer time under anesthesia, which can lead to an increase in post-op complications.
Chapel Hill Surgical Center is fully accredited by the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. This is the nationally recognized leader in hospital accreditation. We have board-certified MD anesthesiologists providing anesthesia and all nurses on our staff have certification in advanced cardiac life support. The nurse to patient ratio is 4:1. Every year, thousands of patients acquire deadly hospital-acquired infections due to the nature of the diseases treated in the hospital setting. In our facility, we treat only healthy tubal reversal patients so our infection rates have remained below 1%, which is far lower than that of any hospital I am aware of. We have full transfer privileges with UNC hospital in the unlikely event this is necessary.
Self-retaining retractors are large metal instruments that are used to (literally) crank open the muscles and fascia to provide the exposure required for the microscope. Self-retaining retractors allow ample visualization to repair the tubes without injuring the surrounding tissues. Post-operative discomfort is related more to the trauma retractors cause to the tissues and muscle than to the skin incision! It would be misleading for someone to claim that not using self-retaining retractors would be "bad".
The main thing to consider is that everyone on this message board who has undergone reversal surgery had their surgery with Dr. Berger -- not any other doctor. They are each a testament to how well all of the techniques you mentioned above work! When you take a look at our pregnancy reports and statistics and read about pregnancies here, it is with the knowledge that each was obtained following reversal surgery with a stent, loupes, and handheld (not self-retaining) retractors! So, that is the best answer to your question! For more information, however, you can click on the link below: http://www.tubal-reversal.net/tubal_reversal_talking_points.htm
[ March 03, 2005, 05:29 PM: Message edited by: Gary S Berger MD ]
posted
I will not speak as to the creditials of the other doctor - but allow me to say this:
When I had my tubes tied, I'd researched and was dead set on having the clips put in, versus burning or cutting, etc. When I approached my midwife about it, this is basically what she said... "A surgeon who specializes in one type of procedure should not be asked to perform a different type. What I'm explaining is that your doctor is trained to perform the bilateral pomeroy. Asking him to use clips when his specialty is something else is not a good idea. I would go with the doctor you feel most comfortable with, and allow him to do the procedure with which he feels most comfortable."
That being said, what works for the other doctor works for him. He may be trained specifically to perform surgery in HIS way - with or without a stint. Dr. Berger has been trained to use one - and I would find it hard to believe that his using a stint would create a problem - or he wouldn't have the success rate he has. He was trained using the stint, has had much success using the stint, therefore he uses the stint.
I have a gastrointestinal doctor. When he performed my surgery, the only type he did was open. He did not do laparoscopic. To ask him to perform lap surgery on me when he's trained SPECIFICALLY to do open, well.... it's a bad idea.
It doesn't mean that one way of doing surgery is better or worse than another way. It just means that this particular surgeon has had better success doing it HIS way.
Also - I have seen Dr. Berger's video. I have watched him delicately pull the muscles and skin to the side so that he doesn't cause as much trauma to the muscles. THIS MATTERS after surgery. How many women have seen a C-section? HOW GENTLE WERE THEY WHEN THEY PULLED THE SKIN TO THE SIDE, USED RETRACTORS AND DUG FOR THE UTERUS AND PULLED THE BABY OUT? I've seen more gentle births by a giraffe!!! LOL (and for those of you who don't know, giraffes give birth standing up - and their baby literally FALLS out of them onto the ground!) I'd rather have someone's gentle hands pulling than I would have a metal object bearing down on my body.
As far as sanitary - I **believe** someone else posted about that and an RN replied (if i recall correctly) that Dr. Berger has NEVER had a patient develop an infection/complication due to unsanitary-ness (for lack of better words).
Well, these are just my opinions about what you said. And again - the other doctor may be very competent, as is (I believe) Dr. Berger. The type of surgery, the method of surgery a physician chooses to perform should never be compared to another. If this doctor's method of surgery were exactly like Dr. Berger's, then you could certainly compare their success rates and statistics. But seeing as they perform two TOTALLY different types of surgery, which ultimately create the same thing (complete tubes), in my humble opinion, COMPARING THEM IS EXACTLY LIKE COMPARING "apples to oranges".
I hope i helped - i certainly feel like i'm rambling... *sigh* lol
xoxo Kem
[ March 04, 2005, 04:33 PM: Message edited by: Gary S Berger MD ]
It is one thing to make claims, and another to provide objective data that supports them. At Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center, years of effort have resulted in the development of a comprehensive and ongoing patient database that allow us to analyze and report the results of what we do.
posted
I was looking online for tubal reversal information and i found another doctor's website, that had some advice of what "not" to do in the process of a tubal reversal.. He states that microscopic lenses rather than a microscope is not good enough for the tubal, he also says that a stent could damage the tubes and should not be used to see if the tube is open, he said that a free standing clinic is not as good as a hospital, that not using "self retaining retractors" is bad... has anyone else heard of this and is there any truth to what he is saying?? he claims to be the first to do a microscopic tubal reversal.
[ March 03, 2005, 04:38 PM: Message edited by: Julia Smith, RN ]
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