Hello everyone! Question...what made you choose Realize over Lap-band? Or did you...

Hello everyone! Question...what made you choose Realize over Lap-band? Or did you choose?

My Dr prefers the Realize. I am getting confusing information and I know this is a hot topic!

Please share with me why you decided on the Realize!!! 

Any regrets???? Do you wish you would have gotten Lap-Band??

Hi, I actually didn't choose, I went into surgery thinking I was getting the lap-band and then went to my 1st post-op appt and saw that I had a realize band..I was a little dissapointed when I found this out because I had done all my research on lab-band..I asked my surgeon about it and she said the port is different which makes it easier to access..thats really all she said but I think they are pretty much the same other than coming in different sizes. I hope this helps. Thanks.

To be completely honest, I didn't really care which one of the bands that I got.  I just knew that I wanted the banding procedure done, and not one of the other WLS options.  The only reason that I ended up getting the Realize Band was because that is what my surgeons practice uses, I honestly had no preference for one over the other.

The two bands are pretty much the same. Both have been used for many years, the Realize Band has been used outside the US longer than the Lap Band. The Realize Band port is slimmer than the Lap Band and the inside pillow where the fluid resides is slightly different. All in all they work in the same mannor and have the same success rates.

For me, I did choose the Realize Band because of the slimmer port...I figured when I lose the weight it will be less likely to be visible. Good luck in your journey.

The analogy I use - it's like the difference between a Honda and Toyota.

To be honest, it's not the tool so much that will depend on your success - but how you use it and if you follow the rules.

I truly liked the Realize on-line support - which the Lapband didn't have at the time.

Know no matter which band you choose, we will be there for you.

my Dr had both of them in His office, showed and explained both of them to me and left it up to me.  I chose the Realize only because it's a flatter port than the Lapband and that's the only reason.

My surgeon chose based on what he saw during surgery. He said it has something to do with the size of the esophagus. He uses both Lap and Realize bands. For all purposes, they work the same, so it doesn't make that big of difference.