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I had the band removed and was revised to the sleeve by Dr. Aceves and had no problems (unlike the band). I love the sleeve and don't regret my decision.

Did your surgeon say you are having acid reflux??? If he is not suggesting a revision and you're not having reflux, why are you having those symptoms?

Im having my revision to 2006 surgery 3/20 Sent from my LG-TP260 using BariatricPal mobile app

Hi! I am also a patient of Dr. Nusbaum. I had the sleve in my country Colombia. The dr is great and his team excellent. I Am schedule nov 18th for a revision. Wanda is excellent i had to fight with Cigna for 6 months to approve the surgery And Wanda fought for me! I cant wait to finish what started.

Hi, Meredith I may get brave and have a handroll tomorrow. I was supposed to have started solids already, but have been scared to. Now that my port may need revising because of it coming away from its stitches, I am worried about the stiching around the actual band too. My surgeon gave me no indication that this would be the case, but I am a natural born worrier! Susannah

I believe the issue here is the fact that your band is not filled. You have got to get the follow up care in order for it to work. You stated that you had twins and your saline was taken out. Why didn't you have it put back in after six weeks or so from giving birth? After care is the most important part of any wls, especially the band. I had restriction only because I did eat what I was supposed to and when I lost weight and felt I could eat more, I made me an appointment and had myself checked. Sure enough I would need a fill to take up the space from losing weight. Unfortunately 8 1/2 years later, I began having problems with it. It slipped, I lost restriction, gained almost all of the weight I lost, and now I'm sleeved. I don't get stuck anymore thank God. I still have restriction after I eat. What has changed for me is my taste buds. I can't eat or drink anything with a lot of sugar and I AM SOOOO HAPPY [emoji846]. Sugar was my addiction/problem and since I've been sleeved for almost two months now, I don't have that problem anymore. My suggestion is to get a fill so that you can get back on track. If you're mind is absolutely made up on having revision surgery, then good luck to you and best wishes. Sent from my SM-G965U using BariatricPal mobile app

Gastric band - been there, done that. Stopped working and I never felt full. So last year after my weight went back up I decided to have the revision and get the sleeve bit due to the build up of scar tissue (surgery was May 2010), surgeon ran out of time to do the VSG safely. So had to wait until 11/30/20 and finally all was completed. I was told he might have to do the bypass and I prayed so hard that didn't happen. I'm 65 and glad I did it. Sent from my SM-J337V using BariatricPal mobile app

I've had my lap band since 2015, and I HATE it. It does what it should do, stops food from going into my stomach. But I get stuck a lot and it hurts, I end up vomiting it up, and anything unhealthy slips right through the band without a problem. I can eat gobs of cake, cookies, chocolates, mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, casseroles, the works but it is painful to eat fruits, lean proteins, vegetables, etc. due to them getting stuck. It's like it's doing the opposite of what I want. When the food stays in the pouch, all I need to do is burp a couple times and boom, pouch is emptied. In short, It. Just. Does. Not. Work. I want a revision but I'm not sure what to do. I need to talk to a doctor, I realize, but I'm nervous. I thought the lap band would be the ticket out of fatness but it's absolutely not. I'm scared if I try something else, that won't work either. I love to eat and I can't stop. I've tried all kinds of diets. It just sucks, my appetite is insatiable and I need to do something about it. I'd love to hear from people who have had revisions and share what's different about their new procedure (whether sleeve or bypass). Sleeve makes me nervous because I've heard a lot about GERD. My spouse's grandfather died of esophageal cancer, due to years of GERD. But bypass makes me nervous because it seems like such a severe surgery... and I don't want to look like a skeleton in a bag of skin 😕 Any shared experiences would be appreciated!

This is my standard reply when this question pops up every couple of days. I won't try to sway anyone one way or another, but I'll give you my reasons for choosing VSG over RNY for my revision from the band. You can also check out the revision, failure, and food issue forums on here to get an idea of some long term RNY patients. For me, it was never an option. The cons outweighed the pros. The VSG was my 2nd, and final WLS. I could have easily had RNY, but I fought to have VSG as my revision from the band. Some factors I considered in deciding on VSG. The pouch that RNY offers is similar to the pouch with the band. Least to say, a pouch sucks, I love having a normal tummy, just less capacity and still fully functioning. 1) No blind stomach left behind that can be difficult to scope yet can still get ulcers and cancer. 2) 2 years max on calorie/carb/sugar malabsorption, but a lifetime of vitamin/nutrient malabsorption. This process is called adaptation, and it happens with intestinal bypass surgeries. 3) I had a pouch with the band, and it sucked. I'm pretty fond of my pyloric valve and the sleeve let me keep it. I love having a normal functioning stomach, just smaller in capacity. 4) Regain stats and #of RNY patients seeking revision truly scared the poop out of me 5) I have too many friends in real life that struggle with Vitamin deficiencies post-RNY, and most of them either never got to goal, or have gained back a significant amount of their weight. 6) The long term complications with RNY were too numerous for my comfort level. Pouch or stoma dilation, strictures, vitamin/nutrient deficiencies, ulcers, 7) I researched gastrectomies that had been performed for stomach cancer and ulcer patients, and found comfort in the long term results and minimal complications of patients that had lost most or all of their stomachs had dealt with over several years. 8) I was a volume eater, and knew a restrictive only procedure would work for me. That was my thought process when I got the band, and I thought I could beat the odds on complications. Sadly, the band only lasted 8 months before I had to revise. 9) I did not want to have food or medication restrictions. I chose WLS to have a "normal" life, and I think it's normal to eat a couple of Cookies. With RNY, I wasn't willing to go through the possibility of dumping if I wanted to have a couple of cookies, or a slice of cake on occasion. The big scare for me is medication restrictions for life. NSAIDS and steroids are a NO GO for life with a RNY pouch. I realize that I may never be diagnosed with a condition or disease that requires steroid use, but it is possible. I want the best long term results with the least amount of complications. Malabsorption is not anything to play with in my mind, and I was not willing to take that risk. I lost all my weight in my ticker with the exception of 7lbs with the sleeve, and I did it in 10.5 months. The 115lbs fell off the first 6.5 months, and then the rest I lost as I was getting into maintenance over another 4 months.. It's been a fabulous journey, and I'm easily maintaining with zero issues for nearly a year at this point. I want to add that every WLS regardless of your choice will require discipline. Only a percentage of RNY patients dump on sugar/fat, pouches and stomas stretch, then you have the medication restrictions. I'm not trying to convince you, but these were my concerns when I knew I had to revise from the band. I started at 263 the day of my revision and today I weigh 127lbs. I bounce on the scale 125-130lbs any given week, and I couldn't be more ecstatic! Best wishes in your research! P.S. I wrote this before pregnancy, and think it's only fair to add that I'm thriving in my pregnancy. Zero deficiencies, zero nutritional issues for my body and the growing baby. I have gained about 10-11lbs in 20 weeks of pregnancy, and my doctors are elated with my progress. Nothing has been challenging in the pregnancy, nor is the pregnancy anymore complicated because of VSG. I struggle with the physical changes, and the weight regain, but it's a work in progress.

Hi everyone, This is sort of déjà vu for me! In 2009 I was on these forums a lot as I prepared for my lap band surgery. I lost 100 pounds in 3 years with lap band. In 2017 I tried to have revision surgery to the sleeve but my BMI was 35 and I only had mild sleep apnea and my insurance would not approve it. Fast forward to almost 2023 and my BMI is now 40. I have a consultation on Wednesday as I now have new insurance (Anthem BCBS) and I'm hoping to have better luck with approval. I am leaning more toward gastric bypass this time. I know a few people who have had the sleeve and a few people who have had bypass and it seems like the people with bypass have had the results that I'm looking for. Also, I don't want another 10 plus years to pass and be back here again. I'm really hoping that all this can be accomplished sometime in the Spring as I have 2 young boys and we spend the majority of our summer camping and I would really like to have all this done before the camping season begins. I'm not sure how feasible that is but I guess I will find out on Wednesday at my appointment! Anyone else out there in a similar position or starting the journey just now? Sent from my SM-N975U using BariatricPal mobile app

It may be too early for me to chime in but I had a revision from band to bypass in May. I had the band 13 years and went from 232 to (usually) the 140s. But when I had a complication (esophageal dysmotility) I was unfilled and (no surprise) gained about 45lbs in the 5-6 months until the revision. So new high weight was 185. Surgery weight was 177. It’s been 7 weeks and I have lost exactly 20 lbs to 157. So I cannot comment on long term effects... BUT One thing is that this is sooo much better than the band. I recently had the first meal out with my husband where I ate a “normal” amount and didn’t end up in the bathroom. Normal being a miso soup and a fish appetizer at a Japanese restaurant. With the band I would often have two bites and not be able to eat which was embarrassing and people would always ask why I wasn’t eating (or sneaking off to the bathroom). Small portions make me feel good and satisfied. Unlike the band where it was usually painful or uncomfortable. Hope this helps! S

Hi all! I am in the Little Elm/Frisco area and just had my surgery in Mexico (self pay) on Saturday. Would love to get together for a support group. I'm on clear liquids now but next week full liquids. Keep me in loop. I will work on profile, so y'all can see my smiling face! I actually had revision surgery. Had the lap band and now have sleeve. Anyone else?

Hello all, I had lap band in 2008 and lost ~250 pounds, from 433 to 178 pounds. I thought the band was a miracle. Then the band went from being my friend to my nemesis. Trying to manage severe GERD has led to almost 100 pound gain. Long story short, I have a doctor appointment tomorrow to see about getting the band out and convert to RNY. (Sleeve is out of the question due to GERD). I have Kaiser and they will only do it in two steps which I am bummed about, but I just want to get the process started. Anyway, the reason for my post is I have been re-emerging on this forum to find others who have transitioned from lap band to RNY. My main question is, for those who have gone from band to RNY, how was the transition for you and did you find that the RNY worked well for you after your band? I read a lot of these stories about people losing a lot of weight quickly on RNY but they are talking about their first bariatric surgery. As a second bariatric surgery I want to know more about what I can expect. Are there forums on here for revision patients? Kathy

Had my sleeve in Nov 2016. Down from 334 lbs to 182 lbs, not too far from my goal weight. Have another appointment with my surgeon on Friday. Been having severe nausea and some discomfort in chest since the sleeve 15 months ago. It has gotten progressively worse until the last 2 months where I can't even eat solids without severe chest pain and nausea, so I avoid them altogether now. Had an endoscopy a few weeks ago, no stricture, just erosions. At that time my surgeon said he didn't think he would have to do a revision. Now I am starting to wonder.

It also sheds some light on the often poor results in regards to weight loss after revision surgery (exception seems to be band to bypass; these patients often seem to have good results).

Thank you Butterfly, I am having the band removed 10/18 and then I have to set up another date for the Sleeve, I am uncertain how long I have to wait. I was advised that the hospital I am going to no longer allows the lap band to sleeve revision in 1 surgery. I will sure ask why on Monday for Preop Visit.

Ya know, not saying it's a stupid idea, but not really necessary.... you can eat anything from ANY cookbook, low carb, low fat, diabetic, SUPER fat, HIGH carb, salads, Soups... whatever. YOU just won't be eating as much! What would the difference in a LapBand cook book be? Smaller portions, is all I can think of. (and probably healthier, but that's just common sense.) There's nothing that is something that NO one can have. Some people eat things like celery, peppers, asparagus (etc) with no problem, while others will PB at the sight of it, then there's somethings that should be fine for everyone, but just don't agree with some people. Here are a couple that I came across... probably the kind of stuff you're looking for (even though they're not lapband specific): [ame=http://www.amazon.com/Eating-Well-After-Weight-Surgery/dp/1569244537/sr=1-1/qid=1163967743/ref=sr_1_1/002-9036348-9161618?ie=UTF8&s=books]Eating Well After Weight Loss Surgery[/ame] [ame=http://www.amazon.com/Before-After-Living-Eating-Surgery/dp/0060567228/sr=1-3/qid=1163967743/ref=sr_1_3/002-9036348-9161618?ie=UTF8&s=books]Susan Maria's book.. this lady is well known in the bariatric world.[/ame] (new revised version coming out in the summer)

Praise the Lord, I'm 6 months post op, and very thankful my diabetes was reversed as well as severe reflux I had prior to surgery! My weight loss has been slow with many 3 week stalls, and my surgeon recommends I have to increase the protein intake, as I slacked off of protein shakes the last few months. (Just got tired of them). I'm back to having a protein shake of 30 gm. plus what I get in foods to hopefully increase wt. loss & slow down hair loss. Overall, done well down 50 lbs. & Hgb A1C is 5.4 (also off cholesterol med. since surgery, but lab levels creeping back up, keeping a watch on it)

I doubt you'll find many, if anyone, on this site who thinks the band is a better option - too many of the people here are having band to sleeve revisions because the band isn't doing the job or is causing problems in the long run. Could you stretch your sleeve? Yes, of course, if you constantly push your sleeve past its limit it's possible to stretch it. The good news is that it isn't as easy or quick to stretch as the pouches you get from a band or from a gastric bypass. The reason is that the stretchiest part of the stomach, the fundus, is removed during a sleeve surgery, but is part of the pouch created for either the band or the gastric bypass. Your sleeve WILL relax to some degree as you get further out, as well. It will never be as big as it was before, but you may find you go from a sleeve that holds 1/4-1/2 cup to a sleeve that holds 1.5 cups, perhaps, which is still a pretty small amount of food! You should take supplements for life - although the sleeve isn't a malabsorptive procedure like the gastric bypass, it still impacts your ability to get all your nutrition needs via food because the volume of food you can eat is so much smaller. Some do manage to get all their nutrition needs from food, but it requires the kind of focused planning that most of us would find difficult to do in the long run. As far as risks, yes., there are risks. You can develop a leak, which can be a life-threatening situation. Like other surgeries, there are infections possible. You could develop a stricture, which is a sort of blockage that makes it difficult for food to move through your system and may require additional procedures. There are other risks that your surgeon will make sure you're aware of and sign off on before you will get the surgery. The good news is that the risk factor is pretty low. I don't remember the exact numbers right now, but you have a better chance of dying in a car wreck than dying from this surgery, for example. If you do a search for sleeve gastrectomy on the web, you'll find more information than you know what to do with about the surgery and its risks, plus YouTube videos of the surgery itself if you really want to know! I'm six days out right now. No regrets for me so far. It's not uncommon to feel a little regret in the first few weeks and months, but the majority of people seem to decide it was worth it in the long run. Good luck on your decision-making process!

Just be aware that if you have GERD or other stomach acid issues, the sleeve will more than likely make that worse. And, the sleeve is the *only* surgery that's not reversible as 90% of your stomach is going to end up in medical waste and contrary to popular belief, the bypass is reversible, just under specific conditions due to the added danger in reversal, but, it can and does occur. With the vitamins you are taking now, that's more than I'm required to take... I don't think you'd have an issue with the bypass in my opinion based on what you've written. Either way, you decide what you want to do, just be open to what your doctor has to say about it. I was set on the sleeve myself when I was looking at revising from the band. My surgeon wouldn't do the sleeve due to reasons specific to my case. She advised that others in her practice would do the surgery and outlined why she wouldn't. After talking with her, I agreed that her reasons were sound and decided to go with the bypass rather than the sleeve and I'll tell you this, I'm 100% glad I did. Found out I had Grade 4 Esophagitis during pre-op testing, and I had no idea. If I had gotten the sleeve, this would have gotten much much worse. But since the bypass reduces or reverses acid reflux issues, my Esophagitis is now Grade 1 after only 6 months and may be completely healed at this point (won't know until my next scoping). Just be open to *all* the facts and information and make the best choice for you based on that information rather than assumed or perceived personal preference (speaking from personal experience on this one)

hey! yes im sure you are in very good hands, ive researched alot and hes the best revision doctors around. i am having my lift with the best body contouring surgeons in Mexico :-) Dra, carmina cardenas. to give you an idea of her prices, a butt lift with an open wing incision and a groin incision thighlift with lipo and ft grafting to butt and hips costs 5000USd with an overnight stay at the hospital. she great and shes known as the seamstress for her unbelievably almost invisible scar lines. you can look up her reviews on makemeheal dot com under the butt lift forum

I will second topgun's advice on really understanding the your problem - is it physical failure of the band (slippage, erosion, etc.) or incompatibility of the band procedure with your physiology/psychology? The different procedures have different characters which make them compatible with some patients and imcompatible with others. If it's a physical failure of the band, then the sleeve is a sensible revision; however if it's a problem of compatiblity with the restrictive nature of the band, then another restrictive procedure may not be the best fit for you. Look carefully (as you are doing here) to understand how the two procedures differ, and how they are similar, in how people use them to lose weight. It may be that a more malabsorptive procedure like the DS may be a better fit; few people like the idea of the intestinal rerouting, but sometimes that's what is needed to get the weight off and keep it off. The bands are often sold and chosen based upon them being a simple and quick procedure, and this is also an attraction for the VSG, but that doesn't mean that they are necessarily the best choice for an individual in the long run. In our support group meeting last night we were discussing a patient that they had on the table yesterday who had previously revised a band to an RNY, and when that didn't work was getting the RNY revised to a DS - three WLS over about five years. This is something that you would like to avoid, so do all the research that you can and do a lot of soul searching on understanding yourself to make the best decision that you can.

Sorry this happened to you, the lap band has caused respiratory issues in MANY lap banders when acid reflux gets so bad, the acid reflux can get very dangerous if not treated with removing saline and medications, timely, and as you can see cause respiratory issues, many have also reported aspiration pneumonia from long term reflux and band slippage. Please be advised the Sleeve CAN cause horrible reflux as well and MANY now are having to revise to the Bypass if the reflux get really bad with the Sleeve, since there is no turning back after you get your stomach removed. I hope you can find relief and answers, good luck.

So i had sleeve done last Monday. So far so good. I do get some pain in my chest if i lay flat in a bed (Maybe acid reflux) but if i just prop up my head i am good. But never know if revision may be needed in the future and since i am self pay that could be a problem. here in Florida bariatric surgery is not covered under the affordable care act (obamacare) So i have been doing research on which states do. One in particular is South Dakota. So if i were to say move to South Dakota, establish my residency there and get health insurance thru the affordable care act, Bariatric surgery is covered. one great resource there is a company called America's Mailbox, where you can setup your own residency (in a RV) get a drivers license, south dakota plates ect... Think that will be my backup plan if one day in the future i need a revision which i hope i do not.

Boy that's a lot of planning and hoops to jump through. Hopefully you won't need a revision.