Can 15 or 17 year olds have lapband surgery?

[pattygreen 5]

I have 2 sons who are both overwieght. Has anyone ever heard of teens having lapband? Do they allow it?

[reverie 49]

I believe the minimum age is 18, but I'm not sure. However, some surgeons will operate on 17 year olds. Fifteen may be a little too young. Maybe you can encourage them to do the Lapband diet and see how it works?

[btrieger 21]

Are they overweight or morbidly obese?

I'm going to get some slack for saying this but I think anyone under 25 is too young to be having bariatric surgery.

At that point in life; how many diets or programs could you have possibly tried? Surgery should be a last resort after all else fails.

[Humming Bird 275]

Hi Patty,

I kinda agree with BT on this one, but if they are morbidly obese, I may lean more toward the idea of getting lapband. There are many teens that get lapband. I found a website one time about it.

I think the teen years are very rough to get through and overeating may be a way to cope. If the boys are already morbidly obese I think they may need some sort of therapy, but the weight may be just too much for them to take off and keep off. It would be worth figuring out BMI numbers and such and speaking with a very good lapband Doc.

[CurvyCat 0]

I'd have to say that I think electively adding anything permanent to one's anatomy before the age of adulthood is a bad idea.

I do wish I had known about the band in my mid to late 20s, but teens - especially boys - aren't done growing at that age. Their bodies are still in such a state of flux that I would bet the risk factors go up. I'd wait until they're done with puberty, are adults, and can really make the choice for themselves.

I went (on a hardship program, I'm not rich, LOL) to a ritzy college prep high school, and I remember seeing plastic surgery gone awry on teens, girls getting their jaws wired shut to lose weight, girls all bruised up after Lipo, etc. They're KIDS. And while it is HARD to be a fat teen, I know, they have time to reach adulthood before committing to something like this for LIFE.

[Humming Bird 275]

I'm sure you could find a surgeon to do it, BUT would it be the right thing to do? The more thought I give to your question, the more I'm thinking NO. Of course I don't know your boys, but 99.9% of the boys I've known at that age do not have the maturity level that would be needed.Maybe you could check other options. Some sort of education for them. Fatcamp, personal trainer .......

[LeighaMason 19]

Patty! What are you doing out here? (Kidding!)

I think it depends on the teen. As you and I have discussed before, I was living on my own at 15, (I had been legally "divorced" from my parents) supporting myself and finishing high school. I think I was mature enough to have followed the requirements. However, my 15 year old son, he isn't, so I would not let him have the band, no matter how much he needed it.

That being said, there are Dr's who will do the procedure (off label) but I don't think there are insurance companies who will pay for it.

[pattygreen 5]

My 15 year old is 6'2" and weighs 350 lbs. My 17 year old is 6'5" and weighs 350 lbs. also. They have 5 older biological siblings who are normal weights for their heights. The other 3 we took in and raised are also normal weights for their heights. I don't really understand what happened to the 2 youngest boys, but they were not raised any differently. Because they are sooo tall, they don't look too overwieight, but they are very much so. I weighed 281 lbs. at my highest weight and now weigh 221. (60lb loss with lapband) I am 5'6" tall. I can't seem to lose any more. I am comfortable at this weight, for I've weighed about 215 from the time I turned 20 till I was about 40. I am now 49. I gained the extra 60 lbs. after I went on blood sugar meds when I turned 40 or so. Lapband took it off for me. I would love to see them lose weight. I have been praying about it. I have recently been encouraging them to exercise more by getting out of the house more. I bought them both new bikes and the WII sports system. I hope that will help them. Any advice would help. Thanks for all your input thus far. I appreciate it.

[sweetkc85 0]

Are they overweight or morbidly obese?

I'm going to get some slack for saying this but I think anyone under 25 is too young to be having bariatric surgery.

At that point in life; how many diets or programs could you have possibly tried? Surgery should be a last resort after all else fails.

Yeah i have to give you the slack lol... i am 25 now but i have been dieting and all that stuff since i was 16 years old and believe me i have tried everything, even the things i wasn't old enough for, my grandma got me into it... she was the one who put me on the diet at sixteen, i have did the Atkins, cuz my aunt was on it and i did it with her, the southbeach diet... fail, nutrisystem, i ended up losing 25 pounds on it, but could no long afford it because i was eighteen still in highschool and only worked part time hours... Jenny craig... yeah not good i actually gained weight, and i also tried the E-diets.com thing... food was good, but again could not afford it after losing my job...even when i was 16 i was obese, just not morbidly.. but that eighteen mark, that's when i became morbidly, so i really don't think it has to do with age because even if you lose weight in your teens, there is still that 98% chance that you will gain it back when you get older... Anyway if i knew about this surgery when i was 18, (when i became morbidly obese with health problems) i would have gotten the surgery done back than too...

[pattygreen 5]

sweetkc, I had the lapband done at age 47. How I wish I had it done at 19. I could have spared myself all of that. (you know, dieting crap that doesn't work) Years and years of failing to overcome my eating addiction! We all know that dieting DOES NOT work. And if it did, it didn't last. So, why not have it done when you are young?

[pattygreen 5]

Patty! What are you doing out here? (Kidding!)

Yeah. I like to rant and rave. But when having a question about the lapband, I must turn to the forums.

[Mariasha 3]

As a 24 year old who struggled with being obese all through my teens, I wish I would have done this sooner.

My surgeon Dr Fielding at NYU is one of the pioneering surgeons of the lap band and has operated on hundreds of adolescents.

I see you live in CT so if you are interested I would make the trip in to the city to meet and discuss this with him.

[pattygreen 5]

Mariasha, thank you for the doctors name. I may look him up. I am about an hour from NYC.

[Mariasha 3]

Mariasha, thank you for the doctors name. I may look him up. I am about an hour from NYC.

Sure!

He is an Australian Doctor and was doing lap bands there long before they were being done in the USA. He was one of the first Doctors to bring this procedure here and taught it to many of the surgeons who now perform it.

One of the great things about him is that he also has a lap band himself, so he really understands what your going through.

Here is a little more info to help you.

Here is a link to Dr Fielding's Bio on NYU's website.

And here is his page on lapband talk. If you scroll down to the bottom you will see in the patient reviews and comments that everyone who has used him is very happy with him.

[honk 780]

Two things jump out at me about this. One, I don't think they should have surgery that could affect their nutritional intake before they finish puberty. My brother grew four inches his freshman year of college. Also if they are of average intelligence I don't think you should be making major life altering decisions for people who are almost of age. If they are still having weight issues when they are 20 then perhaps I would broach the subject with them. Other wise you risk them rebelling and then not respecting your thoughts on the issue.