help. realize or lapband

BIG T · May 16, 2008

does anybody know,if the realize band is not a good option for guys my dr offers both,,but the nurse at the office said i would be getting the inamed lapband,because the realize band is better suited for womens anatomy,,i've never seen this anywhere before,,on any web site ,,but said dr only uses the inamed on men,,,he's done about 1500 of these so ,,well i'm confused lol:confused2:

Northwest_Nance · May 16, 2008

I was banded with the Realize band yesterday. My doctor told me there is virtually no difference between the two, and he showed me a stack of research and literature to back him up. Of course, every doctor has their own opinion and you have to trust your own doctor.

My doctor gave me a choice of which band, and he gave me links to the website for each band. You can only access the detailed part of the websites if you have your doctor's access number. I chose the Realize band because it has a really good website with places to track your food diary, your weight, etc. But as far as I could see both bands really function the same.

moonshadow2468 · May 16, 2008

I'm a guy with the Realize band and love it.

BIG T · May 17, 2008

thanks guys for your reply 's talked to the dr office today they told me dr prefers to use the abl band on men but could get the the realize if i wanted it,,,i think i'll go with his recs that is the large size band for men,,like his office says hes done over 1500 of these,,so dr knows best

faithmd · May 17, 2008

May I ask who your doc is? 1500 bands done by a doc in the US is pretty awesome!

My doc had told me that the often when he gets in there, the anatomy of a male requires a large-sized band (used to be the VG, APL, etc...) but one cannot tell for certain until they are looking at your insides. So he has one of each size available and based on the thickness of your stomach muscle, and what length band you'd need he chooses which to use.

In terms of Realize v. LapBand, I think I'm in the middle on that one. They are virtually the same, from what I've read the anchoring system for the port is the biggest difference. The LapBand port is stitched down, the Realize is anchored with hook-like thingies. Hard to describe, but they use a special instrument to secure it, I'd rather be stitched, but does it really matter? Probably not.

And online tracking and support groups are not a dealmaker nor a deal breaker for me. I used to use fitday.com and now am addicted to thedailyplate.com. I come here for my support. I have yet to go to the LapBand site for anything other than to look up a couple specifics.

Good luck!

Edited May 17, 2008 by faithmd