Prev: Kidney-less Athlete
Next: KIDNEY REFUNCTION
From: MARK HEUSTIS on 14 Aug 2005 02:32
Hi all:

I'm two years out on a kidney transplant and I'll have to have a
parathyoroidectomy soon.

My question is has anyone had the MIRP procedure? The John Norman website
(www.parathyroid.com) says it's the greatest thing since sliced bread, but
then Dr. Norman does sell the operation.

The MIRP-style operation does sound great, less risk, sore results, less
length to operation, no general anesthesia, etc.

But, my Kaiser doctor tells me that that procedure is not appropriate for
secondary hyperparathyroidism caused by renal failure. She says that if they
lop out the gland that glows the brightest on the Sestamibi scan other
glands that over produce might not show on the scan and have to be taken out
later.

The surgeon at Kaiser, where it will cost me very little, does about six
parathyroidectomies a year. Dr. Norman does a thousand or so and would cause
me to rack up a $10,000 plus credit card bill.

Has anyone here had a Mirp parathyroidectomy? Please let me know any
positive or negative experiences. Any experiences from a conventional
parathyroidectomy would be helpful too.

Thanks,

Mark


From: dougweis on 22 Aug 2005 23:25
You will have to make the financial decisions, but I can assure you
that Dr. Norman is on the up and up...and he is one of the top
parathyroid experts in the world. I also thought his site "sold", but
after much research and talking to other doctors, I decided to have Dr.
Norman do my Parathroid operation 4 months ago. I think my surgery
actually took about 17 minutes and that included removing some benign
growths on my thyroid. I had zero complications or pain and as his
site says, I was home eating dinner with my wife that night. Hard as
it is to believe, what he says on his very very complete web site is
really accurate and true. Since he has does so many parathyroid
surgeries (that really is all he does now although he is also very
experienced at thyroid and other surgery) and so many on folks who have
already had botched operations before that didn't cure their
parathyroid problems, he has seen everything before. I don't know
about you, but that's the type of doctor I wanted working on this area
of my body...where one slip and I might never speak again. I am, I'm
told by blood tests, 100% cured...normal PTH and calcium levels. MIRP
is the only way to do this surgery....it's safer, less complications
and so on....heck, read his site.

He recently (after my operation) did a surgery on-line...real time on
the internet...and you can find it on his site. It was fascinating to
watch.

You will have to think about the expertise of the surgeon, the fact
that you will not have to spend a night in the hospital, painless
surgery and minimal (apparently almost non existent) risk of infection
or complications due to the small incision. All I can say is that I
would strongly encourage you to contact and discuss your case with Dr.
Norman. He does charge for the consultations, but in my experience, it
will be very helpful to you as you make your decision on the total
surgery. One other piece of advice...do not bother to get a parathyroid
scan done locally...it's not worth the time. I had one done at my
local, highly rated hospital and it was useless. Dr. Norman's
immediately showed the "hot" gland the morning of the surgery.

I know, I sound like I am selling too...but it's based on my personal
experience and I have absolutely no vested interest in who you use.
This was my first time in surgery for anything and I was terrified. I
wanted to make sure I had the right surgeon...I would have travelled
anywhere in the US. I clearly made the right decision. If you have a
parathyroid condition of any sort, you should, at the least, consult
with Dr. Norman. Even if you decide to have your local surgeon do the
surgery (and you won't after talking with Dr. Norman), you will learn a
great deal about the surgical options, risks and so on. I met with him
in person 4 weeks prior to the surgery and left so confident that I had
selected the right surgeon and procedure that I was actually looking
forward to getting the surgery done because I would feel better....as I
do today.

Good luck

From: MARK HEUSTIS on 26 Aug 2005 23:59
Thanks for the encouraging words. Was you parathyroidisn tertiary? Was it a
result of kidney failure? Did you have more than one or part of one removed?


<dougweis(a)sprynet.com> wrote in message
news:1124767530.668730.14150(a)z14g2000cwz.googlegroups.com...
> You will have to make the financial decisions, but I can assure you
> that Dr. Norman is on the up and up...and he is one of the top
> parathyroid experts in the world. I also thought his site "sold", but
> after much research and talking to other doctors, I decided to have Dr.
> Norman do my Parathroid operation 4 months ago. I think my surgery
> actually took about 17 minutes and that included removing some benign
> growths on my thyroid. I had zero complications or pain and as his
> site says, I was home eating dinner with my wife that night. Hard as
> it is to believe, what he says on his very very complete web site is
> really accurate and true. Since he has does so many parathyroid
> surgeries (that really is all he does now although he is also very
> experienced at thyroid and other surgery) and so many on folks who have
> already had botched operations before that didn't cure their
> parathyroid problems, he has seen everything before. I don't know
> about you, but that's the type of doctor I wanted working on this area
> of my body...where one slip and I might never speak again. I am, I'm
> told by blood tests, 100% cured...normal PTH and calcium levels. MIRP
> is the only way to do this surgery....it's safer, less complications
> and so on....heck, read his site.
>


From: dougweis on 4 Sep 2005 00:26
I had primary parathroidism and Dr Norman removed only one of the
glands. Given his expertise in parathyroid, I am sure that he can help
you understand your options and I am sure that if surgery is required,
he can do it thru MIRP which is the only procedure he now uses....even
in difficult cases.

You really should contact him to discuss your case....

 | 
Pages: 1
Prev: Kidney-less Athlete
Next: KIDNEY REFUNCTION