Crestwood Medical Center Hospital

I first met Dr. Mailapur in the Spring of 2008 at a seminar on WLS. His presentation aleviated many of the fears I had for this surgery and gave me hope to conquer obesity. Unfortunately, the insurance I had at the time insisted that they did not cover WLS, but I knew that several other co-workers had been covered. I was never able to determine why I was rejected, but I suspect I had not worked at the company long enough. So we switched our insurance to my husband's employer and after a 6 month weight loss program with my primary physician, I was finally approved and had my surgery in late June 2009. Though all the appeals to my original insurance and the switch to the other insurance, Dr. Mailapur and his staff were extremely helpful and supportive. Today is my 1st year anniversary of my surgery and I have lost 130 lbs which is 93% of my goal of 140 lbs. I have dropped from a size 3X (and 4X in some things) to a size 10. I am 59 years old and this is the first time since I was 10 years old that I have worn a size 10! My journey has been relatively complication free. I became nauseated after the leak test 8 hours after surgery and vomited, causing Dr. Mailapur to keep me in the hospital 3 nights and on a clear liquid diet for 2 weeks. But through all this Dr. Mailapur was attentive and encoraging. He stresses "following the program for at least a year" and being involved in a support group - both of which I have done with excellent results. In the first 6 months I had lots of anxiety about my ability to succeed at this - I had failed with so many other weight loss programs. The anxiety has abated especially in the last 6 months when I could see dramatic differences in me. I feel more positive about my success and ability to keep the weight off now that I can see that following the program was indeed the way to go. I have no intention of ever needing this surgery again, but with what I have experienced I would still do this surgery. I still cannot eat much meat and struggle to get my protein absorption to the level Dr. Mailapur would like (I in am the low normal range). In Jan 2010, when I noted that I had difficulties with meat, eggs, and most vegetables, Dr. Mailapur sent me to a gastrointerologist where I had an endoscopy which indicated that the opening to my stomach was irritated. The gastrointerologist enlarged the opening slightly and had me take medicine to eliviate the irritation. I can now eat some meats and vegetables, but still don't tolerate eggs well. Dr. Mailapur was suppportive and listened carefully to my eating problems and ensured me that it would improve. Other than these problems, the last year has been problem free.

My greatest compliment to Dr. M is that EVERYTHING he told me about this surgery was ABSOLUTELY TRUE and ACCURATE! Everything he said would happen DID. He established my expectations and I am wonderfully pleased. I am excited about the changes that are occuring and I thank Dr. M for being forthright, answering all my questions, and DELIVERING the results he promised. I have researched other surgeons, and I can recommend no other. Dr. Ravindra Mailapur has a passion for this surgery and it shows! I have no regrets, with the surgery or the results... and I certainly have NO REGRETS over the excellent surgeon I chose.

Thank you, Dr. M. You are the best!!

Dr. Mailapur is absolutely fantastic! When we first met, he was very caring and actually seemed to want to help instead of just wanting a paycheck. His office staff was great. During the six month wait, they called several times to make sure that I was working on all the paperwork and doing all the things necessary to get approved. Since the surgery, I have seen that his patient care is unbelievable. He called me a few days post op to make sure I was doing well. I highly recommend him to anyone that wants to change their life by doing WLS. He is very thorough and makes sure you know what you are getting into. His complication rate is very low and readily gives out all of those percentages. His surgical competence and bedside manner is unmeasurable!

I have known Dr. Mailapur for a few years as he performed my father's surgery. I thought he was a wonderful surgeon then and when it came time for me to choose a surgeon, he was at the top of my list. He is a very no-nonsense doctor. He expects you to do your part in weight loss. He has no problems in telling you that he will not perform the surgery if you do not complete the requirements, but that the requirements are in place to protect you and make sure that your surgery goes as smoothly as possible, with the least amount of complications. There is a very strict aftercare program in place, with very specific guidelines to follow. After surgery, he will tell you that what he has done is given you a starting point to help reach your goal. What you do with it is up to you.
Dr. Mailapur's office staff is WONDERFUL! They did everything they could to help me in this long process.
Dr. Mailaput reviewed the risks and benefits of the surgery with me in detail. He went over all the questions my sister had, although she was not completely satisfied with his answers.
What I like least about Dr. Mailapur is the fact that he is so busy with so many patients, that he doesn't have a lot of one-on-one time. His bedside manner is great. He is very personable, however he can be very brisk.
All in all. I give Dr. Mailapur a 9. I was very pleased with my surgery and the care I received before and after. I have healed nicely and I am adjusting well to my new, smaller stomach,

I was initially referred to Dr. Mailapur for a different issue but while I was there I spoke to him a little about bariatric surgery. He then invited me to come to his seminar regarding weight loss surgery. I found the seminar to be very help and informative. Dr. Mailapur is a very friendly and straight forward doctor. He is very open about all the risks of surgery. His staff is also very courteous and professional. My husband was VERY nervous about me having surgery and Dr. Mailapur was great about speaking at length with my husband to help ease his mind. Because of that they have built a great rapport. He is also very structured and emphasizes that he has only provided me with a TOOL and the rest is up to me. He has a great bedside manner and I would say that his surgical competence is impeccable! I would highly recommend him to anyone that is considering bariatric surgery.

What was your first impression of him/her?
I liked him, very forthright.

How did your impression change over time?
No.

How would you describe his/her office staff?
Professional.

What did you like least about him/her?
No complaints

How much does he/she emphasize aftercare?
It is to the upmost importance.

Does he/she have a structured aftercare program?
They are in with the hospital, they encourage the group setting

How did he/she address the risks of surgery?
I was told many times the dangers/risks.

How would you rate him/her overall?
I think Dr. Mailapur saved my life.

Which is better, surgical competence, bedside manner, or are both great?
Surgical competence but both are great.

Everything about my weight loss experience with Dr. Mailapur was positive. His seminar was thorough and informative and his staff well prepared. This session and subsequent appt with him were important in validating my decision. He says from the start that surgery is a tool to help reach your goal--he can provide the tool but success depends on the patient. My insurance required that I work on diet with my family doctor for 6 mos. During that time I attended support group mtgs. Participants had only good things to say about Dr. Mailapur. I find him to be an excellent and dedicated surgeon, who is professional and compassionate. It is now 4 mo after surgery; I am extremely pleased with how things have gone. Dr. Mailapur insists that you exercise, take supplements, balance calories with required protein intake, & always call if you have questions. I would recommend Dr. Mailapur and his team to anyone contemplating weight loss surgery. If your experience is like mine, it will be one of the best decisions you ever make.

Dr Foreman gets right to business. He answers your questions without a bunch of fluff. He's busy and I'm busy, so I appreciated the no nonsense aire with which we went through the whole process. It was 3 weeks from 1st visit to surgery. His entire office staff is very proficient and help move the process forward.

I had been contemplating gastric bypass for sometime but hadn’t taken any initial steps in starting the process then I heard about Dr. Mailapur’s seminar. At the seminar it didn’t take me long to realize that he was the perfect choice for me. You could tell by the way he spoke he has such a caring demeanor and that he truly wanted to help.
He took every precaution necessary to see that all went well with my surgery and through his expertise and guidance I have obtained my goal weight in slightly over one year. He is very honest and gifted and I would highly recommend him to anyone.
My advice would be to listen to everything he tells you because he knows what it will take to get you where you want to go! His staff and the Huntsville Hospital were fantastic and I now have a new fresh outlook on life and also a whole new wardrobe :-)
Thank you Dr Mailapur for having the gift and the skills to help those of us in need.

I started my journey with going to Dr. Mailapur's seminar. I had also went to another surgeons seminar but I was more impressed with Dr. Mailapur and his obvious passion about helping people become healthier. I could tell that he does not take this lightly and does not expect his patients to either. He makes sure they are completely informed about the procedure. He even makes you take a test before he does the procedure to make sure you know what you need to before he operates on you. He truly does care from the very beginning about his patients and their well-being. To the best of my knowledge he has not lost any patients either, which impressed me. In my opinion he is not only a very competent surgeon, but has a great bedside manner.