Reply to MrGray
Hello MrGrey.
Like many other people with stomas I was very interested in the concept of TIES and requested more information at the time –which was now some time ago. All I could find out was from their advertising, which I always tend to be wary of.
Thank you for your post. which hints at certain complications after surgery for 'some' patients where the implants had to be removed to reduce further risk to the patient. You also mention the difficulties in finding reviews and feedback.
The TIES advertising suggested going on a mailing list to be kept up to date.
I requested to be put on this list a long time ago and have not heard anything at all.
Along with what we already know about the problems of using mesh in other clinical procedures and, given this present scenario, I would be extremely sceptical about the efficacy of the TIES system.
There is another potential factor which needs to be explored, and that is the fact that we do not seem to have had any positive or negative feedback from anyone who has had this procedure done (apart from the one guy who is being used in their advertising, whom we can presume is being paid for this role)!
This lack of communication makes me suspicious that those who opt to have the procedure done may be bound by a ‘gagging’ clause in their ‘contracts’. So the only feedback the public might be getting would be from those where the procedure has worked. As there only appears to be one of these at present, and the guy has not appeared for an update a since the original advert, we would not know whether the whole enterprise is just a sales gimmick.
What I am particularly interested in is feedback from those patients where the procedure has gone wrong. A whole host of questions arise in this regard surrounding aftercare, putting right any wrongs, compensation for clinical negligence/malpractice, and freedom of speech for the potential ‘victims’.
I do a lot of experimenting with stoma stuff and am well-aware that not everything I invent or develop works for me, let alone other people. However, I do get very enthusiastic about my new ideas, and ‘IF’ I was to try to market them at those early stages of development, (which I would not) the advertising would probably look very similar to that which we witness about the TIES system.
When it come to personal health and contemplating surgery, it is my belief that ‘all’ the evidence should out in the open and above board, so that competent decisions can be made by the potential patient about whether to opt for or out of these procedures.
In the case of the TIES trials, my impression is that this is not happening, so the cliché ‘BUYER BEWARE’ becomes even more pertinent.
Please let us know how this one pans out for you.
Best wishes
Bill