Question:
is there a big scar with gastric banding?

   — Rita D. (posted on December 5, 2000)

December 5, 2000
I'm not sure exactly what you mean by "big", but I'll tell you about mine. It is 8 1/2 inches long. Most of it measures about 1/16 of an inch wide (It looks like someone took a Sharpie marker and drew a line down my stomach). There are 2 sections where it widens to about 1/8 inch. It is also raised very slightly from the surrounding skin, in some places....not bad..no where near what a zit might feel like. Anyway, not sure if that helped or not. All in all I'm pretty happy with how it looks. I was pretty worried it would be one of those that is 1/2 inch wide and really puffy. A nurse explained to me that some people are genetically prone to scar like that...glad I'm not. Also, remember each surgery is different, for example, if you have it done laprascopically (sp?), you will have multiple scars, but shorter ones. Good Luck!!
   — tlg6056

December 5, 2000
depends what kind of surgery your having lap is 5-7 like knife wounds in a simi circle around your abdomon mine is a open 9 1/2 inchs long from sternum below the breast bone to my belly button..mine is long because i had previous surgery and they had to clean up adhisions my scare is a very straight line .. very thin just slightly puffy I am being very careful not to stretch it out so no pulling or pushing or straining lets look at this another way if your here on this site then your at least 100 lbs over weight ..correct if you were to add up the lenght of all your stretch marks they would be longer then this so Don't worry about the scares you can deal with them later
   — Kathleen M.

December 5, 2000
depends what kind of surgery your having lap is 5-7 like knife wounds in a simi circle around your abdomon mine is a open 9 1/2 inchs long from sternum below the breast bone to my belly button..mine is long because i had previous surgery and they had to clean up adhisions my scare is a very straight line .. very thin just slightly puffy I am being very careful not to stretch it out so no pulling or pushing or straining lets look at this another way if your here on this site then your at least 100 lbs over weight ..correct if you were to add up the lenght of all your stretch marks they would be longer then this so Don't worry about the scares you can deal with them later
   — Kathleen M.

December 5, 2000
Hi, I'm one of "those people" who get the keloided scars (they are raised and ropey looking) and I would have to say that still my scar is not THAT bad. I had my surgery 4/25/00 and have lost 105 pounds. The pinkness is fading and while I don't think I will ever wear a belly shirt or a bikini, it is not something that I am ashamed of. It is very very thin, very light pink, goes from breastbone to belly button, but most days I don't even think about it anymore.
   — Beth B.

December 5, 2000
My scar is hardly noticeable. It has faded to almost nothing and you really have to stare at it to see it. The top of it on the other hand is a little more noticeable than the lower half, but even still it's not bad at all. And my scar is 9 1/2" long. Hope this helps...Hugs,
   — Marni

December 5, 2000
I had laparascopic surgery and had six 1/2" incisions "scattered" across my upper abdomen. After 8 months, I cannot locate three of these sites and the other three are just faint lavendar lines.
   — Diana T.

December 5, 2000
I had open rny almost eight months ago. The scar shrinks as you do. My scar is now barely over 8" long, but I know it was longer to start with, but then I've lost almost 20" off my waist. Mine, too, is wider at the top than at the bottom & goes from just below my bra band to about an inch below my belly button. It's not a pretty thing, kind of crooked & still somewhat pink, but a small price to pay. I wish I didn't have the scar, but it's worth it.
   — Kathy W.