Doctor Discouraged Lap Band Procedure

[marg294ever 0]

I went to a seminar last night that the doctor discouraged the Lap Band, and was pushing the sleeve. I have some medical conditions that require me to be on blood thinners, so I feel the best option for me is the Band. I am only beginning the process of finding doctors and deciding if this is good for me. The doctor said when I asked why he was discouraging the Lap Band he said it is in-effective. Reading the success on the forums I am not seeing that, and I know someone that is having success over 4 years now. Is there any one long term with the band that can tell me your thoughts. Is the band worth getting?? I can loose, I can't keep it off so I'm hoping the Band will take care of that. Any one have any thoughts. Success ? Failures? What is your opinion of the Lap Band, would you do it again or choose another surgery?

Margaret

[B-52 7,113]

I'm 5 years plus with the Lap band....

I don't have any experience with other procedures...but I can say the Lap Band does have a high rate of unsuccessful results....

Question is, is it the band's fault? (there are possible complications with all the procedures)

My feeling is that the patient has too much control over how the band works.

If you don't like something, you can change it.

If you wish to eat any foods you wish, you can change it. If you want to eat more than you should, you can change that also. You can control what you think is the correct comfort level....

Staff at my Surgeon's office, would tell me stories about people asking for adjustments to the band for all sorts of reasons...

They are going on vacation and want to enjoy eating more....their son's/daughter's wedding is coming up and they want their band loosened....the holidays are approaching..they miss pizza, etc, etc.

Having a band that is adjustable can be a blessing as well as a curse....from what little I know, other procedures are what they are...you go in, it's done. Now learn to live with it. It is what it is.

The lap band is, in many cases, what you feel it should be.

Myself, personally, I could not control my hunger, could not control my eating. Tried every diet known and failed.

It took surgery..something other than myself, to accomplish where I am today. I needed that thing wrapped around my stomach.
Keep in mind, I can go in and get it adjusted if I so choose....

Could other procedures accomplish the same thing? I suppose...others will give their experiences.

[Inner Surfer Girl 12,015]

I went to a seminar last night that the doctor discouraged the Lap Band, and was pushing the sleeve. I have some medical conditions that require me to be on blood thinners, so I feel the best option for me is the Band. I am only beginning the process of finding doctors and deciding if this is good for me. The doctor said when I asked why he was discouraging the Lap Band he said it is in-effective. Reading the success on the forums I am not seeing that, and I know someone that is having success over 4 years now. Is there any one long term with the band that can tell me your thoughts. Is the band worth getting?? I can loose, I can't keep it off so I'm hoping the Band will take care of that. Any one have any thoughts. Success ? Failures? What is your opinion of the Lap Band, would you do it again or choose another surgery?

Margaret

Just curious, but why would being on blood thinners preclude you from getting the sleeve?

[KristenLe 5,979]

I initially went to the surgeon for lap band. I had no interest in the other options. After more research and after speaking with the surgeon - I decided to go with the sleeve. The band has a 50-60% chance of requiring a second surgery (band slips, erosion, etc) and the lowest % of weight loss. I'm sure there are many success stories but I decided my best option was the sleeve.

[marg294ever 0]

@ inner surfer girl, didn't say it would or wouldn't, this was my first seminar and was just surprised to have a doctor take something off the table in such a general manner.

[jea(n__n)ette 98]

I had my procedure recently and 1.5 months ago my surgeon also recommended the sleeve. His first reason was he thought I'd lose more weight on the sleeve versus the band (he claims the average weight loss is 50 pounds, and hunger never goes away). The second reason was due to his experience level. He has a lot of experience performing gastric sleeve, and it's the most popular WLS in my area. For the lap band, he told me he's removed more bands than he put in. Most of those bands removed are from people that went to Reynosa, Mexico. I could have saved money by going across the border, but I didn't want to risk getting kidnapped or die from hemorrhage, sepsis, or pulmonary embolism.

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[heather0407 14]

hmmm im five years out, dealing with a severe slip. that will require another surgery in the morning, to hopefully reposition to band.

if i had it to do over i would choose another surgery with lower complication rates.

if i had the option financially i would revise to something else.

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[heather0407 14]

now if for some reason its either lap band or no surgery for you.... i would choose to have surgery. because even with the problems i have had my quality of life is so much better now than it was when i start.

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[kshannon 69]

I had the band place 2 ½ years ago, I had pretty good success the first year. I started to fly for my part time job and started having issues. My band slipped last April & I had to the go to the ER to have all my fill removed due to waking up chocking on my own secretions. I stayed with an empty band for almost year deciding what I wanted to do. I visited the surgeon - he confirmed the slip and I'm in the process of a revision. I had my lapband removed this morning and I revise to a RNY next month. I encourage you to look at the good, the bad & the ugly of all surgeries - some people have their bands for years and have great success. Some don't. But I can see why your surgeon doesn't like placing them.

[Carmelo Gonzalez 0]

I've had the lap band for over 12 years now and yes I have lost about 85 lbs. very happy with my surgery with regards to my weight loss. However it has not been easy I rarely can enjoy a meal that is not a Soup or purée. I either have to throw up or suffer for hours with discomfort of my stomach full of gas and no relief if I don't throw up.. But I have been willing to live with this because I figure you pay a prize for everything, it is a big sacrifice not only throwing up most of the time and seeing certain food that I have not been able to eat for years including holiday meals,hamburgers, steak sandwich I could go on and on. You really have to want to make the sacrifice and not unfill your band just so you can eat. I know people that do that, I also know people that just couldn't handle throwing up so they just unfilled their band and now they are as heavy as when they started. However now I'm having severe GERD I'm afraid that it is caused by my band. I was in another financial situation when I paid for my surgery now I don't want to unfill my band and I was reading that sometime the band just needs to be reposition which would mean another procedure which I can't pay for so, in a nut shell I can drink Water slowly and eat mash potatoes and suffer through coughing, acid taste in my mouth and of course throwing up a lot . I hope that I have help with my story. I do love the weight loss

[Kel mag 0]

I went to a weight loss surgeon wanting the lap-band . He talked me into the sleeve procedure.

I had the surgery Dec 2015. Unfortunately I was not successful. Since them I have only lost 20 pounds and that has been with considerable effort. I am now considering adding a band . I think my sleeve just did not give me enough restriction and at least with the band you can adjust it once it's in if you need more restriction you can get a fill. Oddly enough even though I would consider my surgery a failure it has changed my relationship with food drastically for the better. I now have very healthy eating habits and satisfied with reasonable portions and no longer have the desire to binge or stuff myself with sugar. Have a hard time understanding why that has not resulted in greater lose, but with hormone and thyroid issues my metabolism is shot. I believe in order to lose weight my colorie intake still has to be much lower than it is , which is already on the low side so I feel the band my help me stick to a very restrictive diet that otherwise is just too hard. Anyway I am still trying ,determined to get rid of this weight one way or another.

[Read2016 658]

At my seminar, the surgeon also discouraged the band. He said one of them are being taken off the market. At the time of the seminar, 2 weeks ago he said he is taking bands out and revising them to the sleeve. As far as the blood thinner, I think you would have to stop them before any surgical procedure.

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[maygoddess 53]

I wanted to add my experience. I will have had my lapband now for almost 14 years come this August. Dr Pedro Kuri in Mexico did my surgery and I will undoubtedly say that because of his experience even back then is testament to his skill and increased outcomes with the band. Back in 2002, the band was barely approved by FDA for a few years and most US surgeons had maybe done a handful of bands. Back then it was all about Gastric Bypass. Dr Kuri had already done 300+ bands when I went in. To date, he has installed 5500 bands. I lost a total of 130lbs over the first 6+ years of banding..don't recall how long it took, but since I was not a "compliant" bandster at all times, it took me longer,but maintained same weight for at least 6 years. What is most important with the band is surgeon's experience with the band and HOW they place the band on YOUR body and the aftercare. I believe now that doctors with less experience with this band probably have higher erosion, slippage rates. Surgeons are "cut and run".. they want to cut you up..be done..move on..the band sucks for them because it requires years of aftercare. Fills, dieticians, etc..bandsters I believe who say they get food stuck or can only eat Soup or liquids get filled too tight with "blind" fills and then live with it. They want to keep eating and thus OVEREAT the band and then you throw up..it basically becomes surgical bulemia. The whole premise of ANY weight loss surgery is to restrict you..magically your brain telling you that you love food will change and you won't want to eat past the point of throwing up. We basically become like dogs who will eat themselves to throw up level if you let them. With our now small stomachs..we cannot mentally wrap our heads around that we now can only eat about a cup of food at a time. Or you resort to liquids and then you think the band sucks and it has failed because you throw up all the time?

I unfortunately did not continue to go to Mexico after the first 3-4 years to get aftercare from Dr Kuri who always does fills under flouroscopy to make sure you are not too tight or have started packing your esophagus like I did..after getting "blind fills" from a more local surgeon. Lesson learned! I have more than abused this poor band for 14 years and and still have it..no erosion, no slippage. Unfortunately I just had to have port removed because of an infection I was most likely given by a local surgeon's office who gave me a fill that lead to a port infection. This was after at least 9-10 fills over the last 14 years by three different surgeons..one finally got me an infection. Port will be put back in once I heal but thankful to know my band is safe. Who knows what my total run with this silicone "noose" will be...will pray as long as possible!

I would not trust a doctor who discourages one surgery over another..surgeons hate the follow up so the sleeve to them makes sense..cut and run..I don;t like that like the bypass..you can expand your stomach and have no way to adjust it. The sleeve was just the first 1/2 of gastric bypass for overly obese patients to lose some weight before the bypass part. I may be missing something but seems like gastric bypass patients, your little stomach can grow..thus needing to go back and add restriction back..revision. Dr Kuri told me he has been banding sleeve and bypass patients because of this..hmm..

The band is not perfect..I would not take this surgery lightly. RESEARCH your doctor..how many bands has he performed and over how many years. What is the aftercare like? I personally would want a surgeon who has well over 1000 bands placed at this point..16 years after FDA approval. Do they always do blind fills or do they do under flouroscopy?

DO NOT go for a surgery based on just what your insurance covers at the moment or your local surgeon prefers. Whatever surgery you end up with make the decision based on your long term future with this surgery. This band has been in my body for 14 years..we have a love/hate relationship..mostly because I love to eat food..and when it is delish I want MORE..but this bitch wont let me eat more.

I tell people I got the band NOT because I wanted to lose the weight ( I did of course) but more important was to KEEP IT OFF. Something that never happens with just diets. You have a 5% chance of keeping off weight you lose..that SUCKS! 5%..yup! So look at a lifelong commitment to this surgery...not just what procedure will get the weight off but which one has higher odds of keeping it off. With the band...there is an art and science to proper fills and hunger satiation..hunger goes away when you are at the right fill..BUT you have to get your head right...you need to know that scarfing down a whole hamburger is not in your future...barely even a slider..or enjoying pizza or other doughy breads is a thing of the past..you mentally need to wrap your head around being different from everyone else that has no extra thought as to what foods or combination of foods they can eat.

Whatever you decide, I wish you the best. I will end with if I had to do it over again..now with more options..I still would choose the band. I like the adjustability..it can be removed if anything does go wrong..my head has not always been in the game..I want to outeat this thing all the time..I learned the hard lesson when I didnt go back to MY surgeon for proper followup from a more experienced surgeon who cares about his patients outcomes and not just lining his pockets with the latest surgical procedure.

[BayougirlMrsS 3,934]

@maygoddess. I agree with you 100%. I got banded nov of 2009. I have lost a total of 92lbs. I thank god all the time for my band. I have the 14cc band and have 10.5cc n my band. To date i only had two unfills. One for my Tummy Tuck in 2012 and one two years ago when I thought I needed a fill. Turns out 10.5 is my spot. I wish patients would be honest with the dr, I'm sure if they did we would see that it's more "user error" than band. But that's just my opinion. Like anything in life.... You get out what you put in

[gin765 49]

I had a similar, discouraging, experience at the first seminar I was required to attend also. I came back home in tears and heartbroken.

However, last October, I received the first band my surgical team had placed in over two years. All along the way, there was constant pressure to get a sleeve. I continued to state my case and convinced them the band was right for me. I have made a success of it, am 100% happy and would make the same decision again. As of last week, I am below 200 lbs for the first time in 10 years. Best of all, I finally have a chance of keeping it off.

I absolutely believe that, with proper expectations, the band is an amazing tool! This is especially true for the "low-BMI" folks like me... I was a 35 BMI at time of surgery. If you strongly feel the band is right for you, do your research and seek out medical professionals who will suppport you. You have the right to make your own medical decisions.

Good luck to you!