WEIGHT LOSS SURGERY METHODS OF THE FUTURE?

Hi All:

I was banded in July 2004 and will be banded 5 years. I check the board monthly and am so glad there is so much more information available today than there was when I was researching weight loss surgery.

I chose to be banded because it was a reversible procedure and I thought in 10 or 20 years, with medical technology as quickly as it is progressing, banding would no longer be done, RNY, DS and VSG would be long gone as viable surgical options and instead replaced with true, safe, non-invasive procedures. My band is just fine (Thank God) but I have never believed that it is a lifetime implant. For example, my dad's pacemaker has already been replaced and my mom's hip replacement from 10 years ago needs to be revised. These are lifetime implants. Hopefully, our bands will last 10-15 years-let us pray!

For newbies out there, no matter how good  insurance you have, never asssume emergency surgery for you is going to be free or lowcost. For those of us thast have insurance (with a wls exclusion), an emergency medical fund is essential. I have been thrilled when I read about one you being able to save enough for plastics but I have never read anyone mention that they have money set aside just for a wls emergency. IT IS essential. I travel extensively for work and wherever I go, I have the name of the local band surgeon and where to go for a fill.

Here are my stats. I am 35 yrs. old, 5'5" and started at 260. I lost 10 pounds on the pre-op liquid diet which took me  to 250. I lost another 30 pounds on the 6 week liquid diet which took me to 220. In the next 2 years I lost an additional 40 pounds which took me to 180 in 2006. I am now 200 so i have lost and maintained a 50% weight loss. Was weight loss surgery a good investment? I think so. I like to do a cost per pound analysis. I have currently spent $3500 for fills and $8500 for the surgery. $12000 for 60 pounds or $200 a pound. For those of you bandsters  that paid out of pocket divide your pounds lost by your surgery and maintenance visit costs and you'll get a cost per pound.

I would love to see posts on this forum from patients 5-10 years out of surgery--what ever surgery type you had. Share with us what the "weight loss real world" is like.

More importantly, the questions I'd like to pose to everybody out there. What weight loss surgeries will we be discussing on this forum 10 years from now? Will our bands be still in place? Will the DSers have a modified new DS? Will the RNY still be the gold standard in the U.S. I'm not looking to start a debate about weight loss surgery methods or inspire negativity or drama.

Just posing a straight up question to look 10 years into the future. As you can imange 10 years ago, we were discussing phen-fen and had no idea what a RNY or a DS or a VSG or a gastric band was! So 10 years from now guys, what do ya think? Will peple have gastric stimulators, a revised TOGA procedure via endoscopy, biodegradable bands (yes, gastric bands that do their job and break down in the body with no surgery), brain electrodes to lose weight (like recently featured on Oprah), a weight loss pill.

I am not a medical person but I love to discuss technology. So chime in everyone. What new wl technolgy   will we be discus sing 10 years from now on the OH boards?

By the way, I am filled to 6cc in a 4cc band and I have little restriction. I do like my band and am not thinking about a revision. I'm happy with my 60 pond weight loss and will try to lose 60 pounds in a year's time.

Athe best,
Angel

Banded July 2004
Drs. Ortiz/Martinez Tijuana,Mexico
band  filled 6cc in 4cc (band still in good position but little restriction) cannot get any more fills--band full
260 starting weight
250 surgery  weight
200 plus or minus 5 pounds current weight
50 percent weight loss
goal weight 135-140


 

If I were you I would definitely be contacting my surgeon to find out if you have a leak or some other issue.   Doesn't make sense to me that your band has little restriction in the scenario you are describing.   You deserve to have this resolved so you can continue to do well on your journey.

I actually looked into what the Europeans had been doing as far as WLS, as they were a few years ahead of us, and had more data on the band. Actually, all of the surgeries have evolved, but band placement has dropped dramatically there, so I wonder if when we catch up in a few more years, that will also be the trend here.

My surgeon said the DS I have (which is similar to most of the current DS surgeries) is like a hybrid of the Scopinaro BPD-DS, which had such a short common channel, and had real nutrition and poop issues. It has definitely evolved into something most of us can live with.

I hope they eventually come up with a non-surgical way to deal with obesity in the future, but I sure don't see anything hopeful on the horizon.

hi there:

yup, the europeans and australians are way ahead of us in band long-tern data.

i am so happy you have had awesome success with the ds. i am hoping for an effecrtive non-invasive surgery on the horizon. something that incorporates the rose, stomaphyx, toga, etc. but for new patients.

rock your ds!