The purpose of revisions?

I am considering Lapband and have a seminar in two weeks, so I am trying to gather all the info I can before I make my decision.
I am wondering what a revision is? 
Why would someone need one?
Is it a common thing to do?

Thanks in advance.

Sometimes the lap band just doesn't work.

If you've done your research you understand that the band is placed on the stomach and the basic principle is they put saline in your band and it restricts the amount of food your stomach holds.

Some people like me could never get to restriction.  Either too tight where I threw u*****t tight enough that I could eat a cup or more food and was hungry all the time

another problem is the band is sutured to the stomach and sometimes it will move or slip and the stomach will come up thru the band and people need the revision.

I lost 54 pounds with the band and then stopped losing.  I followed the rules and exercised all the time.  I needed to lose 142 pounds. 

please research all surgeries and understand all the complications with each surgery.  What surgeries does your insurance cover??  The sleeve is also a restrictive procedure and you have restriction from the beginning. 

I learned a lot with the band. I went in thinking nothing bad was going to happen as long as I ate correctly and exercised.  I had severe, severe heartburn and no mater how much saline was in the band I had heart burn and eventually pain. 

Thank you for answering. I am scared of the gastric bypass surgery because I know a handful of people that have had it done and they all have lost tons of weight and most have gained back. No they look white, skin hanging, need b12 shots and have problems with blood all the time.

I am looking foward to going to the seminar next week and my first Dr. appt. I am in the preparation mode now and have informed everyone in the house that food choices are going to be overhauled.

I have gained alot of information from this site so far but I'm sure I have a long way to go.

I think my mindset is in the right place. I figure I have atleast 6 months because of the pre-op diet and if I lose enought weight to disqualify myself then I am doing good and maybe do not need the extra help of the surgery. If I still qualify and have the surgery then I am ahead of the game as far as how much I have to lose.

I had my meniscus fixed last week and do have bone on bone arthritis but am able to ride my bike and 1 more week can get back to water aerobics. I am excited for the frist time in a long time about my wieght and instead of looking at it as OMG I have to lose 150 lbs I see it as I can't wait to be able to hike again, walk in the woods, bike ride and be active.

Research the sleeve also.  You can take NSAIDS with the sleeve and you can't with the bypass.  I was not a candidate for the sleeve because my heartburn was really bad but it works for a lot of people. 

You have a BMI of 53. A Band will be pretty much useless for you. On the other hand, a DS would be HIGHLY effective.

Keep an open mind, and RESEARCH the DS. Visit the DS forum here: www.obesityhelp.com/forums/ds/ and check out this site: www.dsfacts.com


And---if the surgeon doing the seminar you're attending doesn't actually DO the DS, don't expect to recieve compplete, accurate info about it from him. The Chevy dealer isn't going to sing the praises of the new Cadillac, after all.

I'm not going to be PC about this - a revision means fixing a failed prior surgery.  The lapband has the HIGHEST need for revisions, and the band is not designed to last a lifetime, or even more than a few years.  Even if the band itself doesn't fail mechanically, the procedure fails the majority of people over time.

DO NOT GET THE BAND!!

And I would eliminate the RNY as well - works better than the band, but waaay too many failures after 5 - 10 years.  DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH!

If you are morbidly obese, you should be considering the DS.  The sleeve is a distant second choice, and does NOT have long term statistics backing it up.

In that part on the bottom of your post it says you eat 3000+ calories a day? Is this true and if it is doesn't that seem like twice the calloires you should be eating?

You need to learn about the DS and how it works.

50% or so of the calories I eat come from fat.  I only absorb about 20% of that.  I only absorb about 50-60% of the protein and complex carbs I eat.  (Simple carbs like sugar are absorbed 100% - no free pass on that.)  Using the "DS Math" those 3000 calories EATEN end up being about 1200-1300 calories ABSORBED.

Eating high protein and high fat doesn't suck.  Red meat, BACON!, poultry WITH the skin, seafood with butter, vegetables with butter or Hollandaise, full fat salad dressing, as much mayonnaise in my chicken and tuna salad as I want; eggs and full fat cheese - all DS health food.  And no, I don't worry about bad fats or cholesterol - my latest cholesterol was 163, and my HDLs were 63.  My triglycerides were 112 - first time over 100 in 8 years (I might not have fasted for enough hours before the test though - I think it was supposed to be 12 hours, and it was more like 10 - I have a snack before bed every night).  My CRP dropped from 10X normal to low normal, indicating my cardiovascular inflammation has been cured.  My blood pressure is 108/68, and my resting heart rate is around 62.  And I COAT my food with salt.  My skinny-minnie PCP is jealous of my numbers.

The only thing I should be doing better is eating fewer complex carbs.  I mostly eat ones that don't bother me - potatoes and corn-based things (cheesey poofs!), and fruit.  But I'm not in the least bit concerned about the CALORIES I eat, just where they come from.  At 8 years out, I still have restriction, but I eat frequently, and my labs are perfect.

So no, I am not eating twice the calories I should.  The extra carbs I'm eating are probably only a couple hundred calories a day, and I could cut those out if I wanted to lose more, but frankly, I'm happier eating them than I am desirous of losing weight at this moment - if and when I change my mind about that, or up my exercise more, I will lose more.  Until then, I'm a plumpish 58 year old who has nice "cushion for the pushin'" that my DH likes anyway, and this is a perfectly fine balance for me between lack of guilt in enjoying my food completely, and still being in normal sized clothes and fitting into normal sized places (plane seats, e.g.).  It would just take more work than I'm willing to invest to get and stay thinner right now.

I'm sorry to say that if you get the Band, you will find out what a revision is for yourself.

Listen to Diana.

I am desperately trying to get my failed lapband out of me as we speak. I have regained all my weight and recently found that the band is causing damage to my esophagus.

AND I've got 4ccs in a 4cc band and I can eat whatever the hell I want. Except things that are good for me like salad and chicken. But put in front of a box of Oreos and they'll slide down now problem. I could easily eat 2-3000 calories of junk a day and the band wouldn't help. Plus, you get no satiety - you never feel full. You just get this weird pressure. No fun.

Yes, revision is very common in lap band patients.   I just had a revision from lapband to bypass and I am very very happy with the decision.

Life was good the first year after being banded, but then it has gotten bad, constant regurgation, random tightness, etc.  Couldn't live like this anymore

Please research, and run away from the band if possible.