RNY OR BAND

OK now, Im offically confused. Call me dumb but I guess Im a little behind. I know what the band is, what is RNY? :help: Someone please Inform me. Thank you so much! Becka :angel:

Lap band is the band around the stomach that is adjustable externally so you tighten it up so you have more restriction when you eat. RNY is short for Roux En-Y surgery where they make a small pouch out of your stomach and separate that pouch from the remainder of the stomach either with a staple line or they cut between the staples and separate the two. Then they bypass the upper part of the intestines and hook the pouch up to the instestines. So your eating is restricted due to the small pouch of a stomach and since the upper part of the intestines are bypassed you do not absorb all that you ingest. So RNY is one of the gastric bypass surgeries. RNY can be performed as an "open RNY" which means a large incision or laproscopically through 5-6 small incisions and that is called "lap RNY" not to be confused with the "lap band". Here is a diagram of RNY: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/imagepages/19268.htm Here is a diagram of lap band: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/imagepages/19497.htm Kathy

WOW - Kathy, LOVE this new picture!!!!!!!! [um, or it's new to me] Hot damn woman, you're at least 20 years YOUNGER then you were when you started this journey!!! Freakn amazing. BECCA? Kathy answered your question wonderfully - nothing I could add to her explanation. Just wanted to say, GOOD LUCK TO YOU, with whatever surgery you decide on.

Hi Kathy - I'm intrested in the RNY procedure and have actually been to the NIH website as well as many other to research it. But...I have not been able to find a good explanation of the difference between a distal and proxmial RNY. Do you have any info on these procedures?

Jackie, There are actually 3 different terms used: proximal, medial and distal. They are terms used to determine where the intestines is hooked back up. Proximal means closer. Medial means middle. Distal means further away. Someone who is proximal, in theory, should malabsorb less than someone who is distal. And in theory, someone who is distal will probably lose faster or more weight than someone who is proximal. Some surgeons only perform one length of bypass. The actually number of centimeters bypassed for each of these categories varies by surgeon, as well. Hope this helps. Kathy

Kathy gave a pretty good description. I chose RNY because of the options and details I was given. For the amount of weight loss I needed to lose and weighing the risks, I made my decision. My doctor told me that RNY has a higher percentage of weight loss and keeping the weight off and less risks of leaks. I don't want to put down or talk badly about my Lap Banders, but that just didn't seem like a good option for me. Everyone is different. Its definitely something your surgeon should go over with you, Amber