Question:
Anyone here have Cerebral Palsy and had WLS?

I have mild CP. I'm lucky in that I've been pretty mobile up until now. I'm 42, and for the past several years all my joints are starting to constantly hurt whenever I'm bearing weight on them. My coordination and sense of balance have also been compromised greatly. However, my BMI is only 37.9. I also have high blood pressure (and the med doesn't help at all with the balance issue), fibromyalgia and high cholestorol. My surgeon and pcp have both tentatively approved me for surgery, and now I'm waiting for the insurance request to go in. I'm worried about the low BMI. Anyone out there who has had a similar situation?    — Le P. (posted on September 24, 2003)

September 25, 2003
I am a medical review nurse. I work for a precert company. I do the kinds of reviews that you are sending in a request for. It very much depends on what stipulations the employer sets up for his insurance plan. Then the insurance company & the precert company follows those guidelines. If your insurance will cover wls, then usually they review in pretty much a basic standard way across the industry. It isn't just looking at the bmi. All the other stuff you send in is looked at also, including your co-morbidites and such. That's why each one of these is so individual, everyone has different information for themselves! But all the info they do require gives them the best overall picture of your situation so they can decide. I have seen people with bmi's of 35 - 40 get approved. It really is up to the people doing the review. Most of the time, the nurses take the info and the insurance company md's make the final decision. You may need to give more thorough information than some due to lower bmi. But I certainly wouldn't give up hope!! I sure hope this all works out in your favor! Good Luck!!
   — Karen M.

September 25, 2003
My mother-in-law had this done and she has cerebral palsy. If she hadn't of had it done than she would now be in a wheel chair. I am not sure what her exact BMI was at the time but I understand it was in the high 30's to low 40's. She wouldn't trade the years of moblity she got from this for the world.
   — Tabitha D.