Expert: Jacqueline Jacques, ND - 1/29/2009

Question
I am 5 years out of having gastric bypass surgery.  Lately I have been found anemic.  I have had blood test for it the last 5 weeks since adding vitamin B and Ferrous Sulfate 325 mg. 2x a day.  Is my local doctor good enough to be treating me or should I go back to my gastric surgeon?  Those vitamins were addition to the ones I was already taking.

Answer
Linda,

It is always a good idea to keep your bariatric surgeon in the loop.  In this case, I would start by letting them know you are being treated for anemia and offering to have a copy of your labs sent to them.  This helps for a couple of reasons:
1) Your bariatric surgeon now knows their is an issue and if you end up needing to follow up with him, it's not a surprise
2) Having your surgeon look at your labs means another set of experienced eyes looking at them - your surgeon my spot something your general practitioner may not.
3) Your surgeon may have some thoughts on how you should be treated both in the short and long term.

Other than that, assuming you have a good doctor and that your anemia is relatively uncomplicated, your GP can probably work with you.  If you are not getting better or are getting worse over the next few months, then I would go back to your bariatric surgeon for follow up at that point - or have your GP consult with your surgeon about your case.

Please let me know if you need more information.

In Health,

Dr. Jacques