Bad news for the Lap BAnd?

*Hijack*

Hi Shellqueen!

Nice to hear from you!  I'm glad Jean's book has been a help and you're moving forward.

Best~

Lisa O.

Thanks for your nice words about Bandwagon. I'm so glad it has helped you!

Jean

OMG Jean!  I didnt know you wrote a book!  I have been away for way tooooo long!  I am going to go check out where to buy it!  I want to read it....you have offered so many kind words and inspirations on here!  Cant wait to order it!  Thank you for all that you do!

Go to jean-onthebandwagon.blogspot.com and click on the picture of the book cover on the left hand side of the screen, or click on my OH banner ad, found at the upper right hand side of the Lap-Band forum screen.

Start here:


www.obesityhelp.com/forums/amos/4428353/What-does-Less-Invas ive-REALLY-mean/

www.obesityhelp.com/forums/amos/4304076/PLEASE-RESPOND-Explain-your-Lap-Band-AGB-Experience/

www.obesityhelp.com/forums/amos/4376706/If-your-band-FAILED-you-please-check-in-here/

www.obesityhelp.com/forums/amos/4386446/Allergan-amp-Realize-bands-recall-information/

www.obesityhelp.com/forums/amos/4387717/benefit-of-lap-band-surgery-on-16year-old/

www.obesityhelp.com/forums/LapBand/4398937/New-here-Researching-and-Learning/

www.obesityhelp.com/forums/lapband/4399622/Newbie-from-Chicago/#36376935

www.obesityhelp.com/forums/lapband/4421031/I-hate-my-band/

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2698858/?tool=pu bmed
"The placement of a gastric band appears to be a disservice to many morbidly obese patients and therefore, in the current culture of evidence based medicine, the prevalent use of laparoscopic gastric banding can no longer be justified."

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21422330
"However, because nearly 1 out of 3 patients experienced band erosion, and nearly 50% of the patients required removal of their bands (contributing to a reoperation rate of 60%), LAGB appears to result in relatively poor long-term outcomes."

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21188545
"LAGB can achieve an acceptable weight loss in some patients, but the failure in one out of four patients does not allow proposing it as a first-line option for the treatment of obesity."

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20496124
"Of the study population, 146 (52.9%) patients had at least one complication requiring reoperation. Presently, only 148 (53.6%) patients still have their original band, 49 (17.8%) had their original band replaced with a new one, and 79 (28.6%) had their band removed."

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19730234
"The percent of excess weight loss at 4 years was higher in the gastric bypass group (68 ± 19% vs. 45 ± 28%, respectively, P < 0.05)."

Regarding this study - I find this VERY disturbing: "Between 2002 and 2007, 250 patients with a body mass index of 35 to 60 kg/m2 were randomly assigned to gastric bypass or gastric banding."  Randomly assigned a surgery type???  Holy fuck!!  Who would participate in such a trial??

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18795380
7 year study on lapbands, with SOME patients converted to RNY:
"Patients converted to gastric bypass, and those retaining gastric bands throughout the study had very similar outcomes."

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18656830
This is interesting in that the LapBand patients long-term assorted into two types when you plot weight:
"It has been our perception that the weight loss results after gastric bypass are relatively normally and tightly distributed around the mean, making it relatively predictable. However, we have found that the results after adjustable gastric banding are more highly variable. In fact, there appears to be 2 groups of patients after this restrictive operation. One group, that is able to work well and does not struggle much against the restriction, accepts the limits that it imposes, and another group, that does not easily learn to deal with the restriction and hence mal-adapts."


I suspect the dumping syndrome symptoms that are showing up in VSGers relate to their sleeves being made too small in what is likely a vain attempt to prevent long-term stretching.  Those too-small sleeves sound horrible to me - strictures, vomiting and now dumping too (I'm guessing the too-small stomach tries to get the stuff out of there as soon as possible, resulting in the same issue of undigested food hitting the jejunum too soon - DS stomachs aren't made that small and almost NONE of us have this problem - which, by the way, can happen in normies too with overingestion of sugar).  And I don't believe they are going to remain small enough, long term, to prevent overeating and regain in the absence of a metabolic change like that provided by the switch.

Oh boy, did you just open the flood gates...

All I can tell you is that the band worked for me.
It helps control hunger and portion size but I still have to make good food choices because junk food will go right through the band.
The band requires more maintenence becuase you will need to get fills and unfills over time to keep the level of restriction at an optimal level for the lifestyle you choose.

Do you research, talk to your surgeon and read everything you can.  It's a big decision but the bottom line is that no WLS is perfect.  If my insurance would have covered the sleeve I probably would have made that choice because it requires less follow-up, but the band has save my life and I'm grateful!

You're going to hear the good, band and ugly as a result of your inocent question.  Don't  let it upset you in any way.  In the end we all have to take a giant leap of faith and make our best possible educated guess as to which surgery will work best for us as individuals.

Best~
Lisa O.

You will find issues in any type of WLS, finding what works best for you is the biggest step and choice that you will need to make. Its good to know as much info as possible on any one that you consider. I have had some issues with my band, a port replacement, and even my entire band was replaced. I still even 3 yrs out, consider my band a blessing. Would a different surgery have been a better choice? Maybe, but this is the one that I decided to do and I have only one regret, that I did not do it sooner. I am 10 pant sizes smaller, have lost over 250 pounds, and have an entirely new lifestyle. I wish you nothing but positive results in whatever choice that you make!   

Jennifer,

I agree with others that any type of WLS is not a miracle ..with this being said I had Lap Band Surgery in 2008...In a nutshell it has failed.. not me , but the band...I did everything I was told but unfortunately my band has had a leak , went through another surgery and then has another leak..Think about this .. in order to fill your band you must be stuck with a needle by an person that you hope knows what they are doing .. if you get poked incorrectly ( and trust me it happens ALOT) you have the potential to spring a leak.... I was self pay, I paid for 2 surgeries and now have a malfunctioning lap band in that I have to pay to get out ..makes me so sad.   I am not trying to scare you or "open flood gates" I am telling you MY truth ..what I have learned from this entire ordeal is this ..RESEARCH RESEARCH , interview a few doctors, wls patients, find out what the Dr covers and considers himself responsible for ..I certainly did not poke a hole in my own band but when all is said and done I will have invested about $20,000 for NOTHING !!!   I wish I would have signed up for Jenny Craig and gave that a try .. I am workingout , calories counting and have NO TOOL to help ...There are many Lap band cheerleaders out here , and I am thrilled they have success , but there are more and more FAILED LAP BAND people out here, daily we are hearing more and more stories.   Best Wishes to you on your journey.. feel free to email me if you would like more detailed info.

Amy

Amy thinks for bringing up the point that you have NO tool! Some members of this forum can be extremely judgemental. I don't know how many times I have been told that the band is just a "tool". What they fail to realize is that there are MANY of us bandsters that have NO TOOL! It's like trying to drive a car with no motor...........it's NOT gonna get you very far! :-(

Sorry for the position you're in of having wasted so much money on a worthless POS. I am in the same position. So sad that the band manufacturers have lied to so many of us about how the band "works". We should have been told the truth about the band so we could all make INFORMED decisions of if we wanted the band based on ACCURATE band info!

I would seriously recommend against it.  While it has worked well for some, it has caused countless others issues - some severe.

I'm having an endoscopy tomorrow because I have developed an ulcer and/or diverticulum in my esophagus.  See, your body isn't meant to have that much food sitting above the restriction.  Your esophagus isn't built that way. 

And for the people who are going to flame me - I follwed every band rule.  No soda in 5 years, small bites, chew until goo, stop eating when your nose runs (for me), not when you stop feeling hungry (NEVER stopped feeling hunger.  Ever), exercise, etc.  I did it right.  But I started to regain in spite of it all.  Then I got frustrated because I can't get good food down enough (ie protein, salad, etc) and this past year, I admit I gave up.  4 years of hell is long enough.  I'm fat, my apnea is back, and I want it out.  Hoping to get a DS shortly.

One thing I will share that my surgeon told me (he does all the surgeries) is that when trying to remove a band it can be VERY difficult.  Your body grows adhesions and the band can also become attached to your stomach and even your liver.  

If you are serious about weight loss, and serious about surgery, look into ALL of your options.  Don't be fooled into the band because you think it's "safer".  It isn't.  BUT that doesn't mean it's not right for you. 

What I'm saying is if you decide the band is the way because you want the restriction and are comfortable with the work it takes to make it successful, and comfortable with the thought you might need something else later, then look into it.    However, I would recommend almost all the other surgeries before the band.  I've talked to too many people and witnessed first hand with myself and my family members - the band is not a good choice for most.