I want to get a Lap Band after DS. Need a surgeon. Self Pay.

I'm 8 years post op after a GRDS. My stomach was cut in half and that helped me lose a lot of weight, but over the years it has re-stretched and the restrictive component of the surgery is no longer working. I can eat as much as I used to before surgery, and over the last four years I have gained back half the weight I've lost. I've gone back to dieting (UGGH) but I can't maintain the weight loss (big surprise). After four years of post-op yo-yo'ing (which I thought I was done with forever) my mental state is deteriorating and I'm again looking for non-willpower-based options (i.e. surgery). I don't want to have my stomach reduced again. I don't want an expensive, invasive, recovery-intensive surgery. Therefore, i have settled on the lap band because 1) it's minimally invasive 2) it can be done on an outpatient basis 3) the cost is reasonable, and 4) it is adjustable / easily reversible. (Maybe I should have had this procedure in the first place.) MY QUESTIONS IS: Has anyone found a doctor who will put in a lap band after a GRDS? If so, where is the office and how much does it cost? (I'm a self pay.) THANKS!!!

Have you considered the ROSE proceedure or the Stomaphyx. Both are fairly non invasive, restrictive proceedures and I'm sure are comparable to a Lap band and you don''t have to worry about the fills. I know the Stomaphyx  is done on an outpatient basis . Sharon

You might want to try the LapSF docs in San Francisco as they do the Lap-Band, VSG, DS, and RNY.  www.lapsf.com  I know their self-pay prices for VSG are around $18k.  Not sure what they charge for a Lap-Band. You could also try one of the super experienced Mexican Lap-Band doctors, like Dr. Rumbaut.  I think his prices run about $10,000--give or take. Also try Dr. Gagner at Mt Sinai in Miami  He wrote a paper about the Lap-Band over DS so might be a good resource. Good luck :)

I understand how you feel. And I advise not to do the Stomaphyx, ROSE, or EROS procedure. Try Dr. Alberto Aceves or Dr. Rumbaut in Mexico. Dr. Aceves charges $12.5K. Good luck!

Why do you advise against the StomaphyX, Rose or Eros procedures?

There's no long-term data showing any of them work. They are all trials. There is not one journal article on any of them showing any level of success in PubMed.  Not one in any peer reviewed medical journal. Not very many successes on this board here. Cost ($10,000 is usually the figure I see) is the same as a Lap-Band of VSG self-pay. So, why not even consider getting your DS sleeve resized? That's been done before as well. 

Thanks for the input. I'm looking into StomaphX, which has no incisions at all and is done through the mouth. It costs half of what the band costs and has no BMI requirements. Seems like a good idea and I will do some more research. Someone also recommended ROSE, which I will research too. Does anyone have any pros and cons on these 2 procedures?

If you decide to take a look at banding options, please think on that one long and hard.  It's not an easy journey and while weight loss is good, it is harder than I think it has to be. If you do have a revision to a band (aka bandafter) and if you do go to Mexico, please only use one of three doctors for that particular procedure.  Aceves in Mexicali, Rumbaut in Monterrey, or JOSE (not Arturo) Rodriguez in Juarez.  It's a trickier procedure and not just any surgeon can do them safely. The other options.. I don't know anything about those.  Wish I could be of more help.

Unpopular post follows: You have gone from a BMI of 23 to a BMI of 26 and you're seriously considering another surgery?  I think anyone who would perform that surgery should have his or her photo posted next to the word "quack" in any dictionary. AND...the LapBand is the worst possible choice for "non-willpower-based" weight loss.  Life after the LapBand is a diet and even if you're good at it (which you say you are not), long term weight loss is not as successful as you've already experienced. Whatever you are eating now (I'd think it's gotta be carbs) that is causing your (slight) weight gain, you can just as easily eat with the band.  Before I revised from the band to the DS, I asked a friend "what I would learn with the DS that I hadn't learned with the band."  She said, "Not a f'ing thing.  But it will leave you 30 pounds overweight instead of 130 pounds overweight and you can go into a WW meeting with a reasonable problem to solve...like MOST of the women in this country--and all the women who maintain a decent weight--do." I think you don't have a surgery problem, but a perception problem.   Why not call Dee or Michelle at Keshishian's office and tell them how difficult it has become for you to maintain the excellent weight loss you achieved.  Perhaps they have some suggestions. Sue

Glad to see you found this post Sue. I was going to forward it to our DS board for advice for this poor gal. A DS to a lapband? How is that?