John Bagnato, M.D.,F.A.C.S.

Dr. V. John Bagnato has been a general surgeon in Albany, Georgia since 1998. He performed his first LAP-BAND® surgery in 2002 and has provided this bariatric surgery to hundreds of patients. Dr. V. John Bagnato received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Mississippi in 1978. Four years later, he earned his medical degree (MD) from the University of Mississippi School of Medicine. He completed his surgical residency at University Hospital, in Jackson, Mississippi, in 1987, and has been a board certified surgeon since 1988. While Dr. Bagnato was completing his residency, advances in minimally invasive surgical techniques using miniaturized cameras and instruments were being developed. Dr. Bagnato quickly saw the advantages, which include reduced post-operative pain, faster recovery, much smaller incisions, and less scarring that these procedures offered patients. Dr. Bagnato’s career is filled with many firsts related to the development and use of these specialized surgical scopes. In 1989, Dr. Bagnato performed the first laparoscopic gallbladder surgery in Mississippi, well before the majority of surgeons were aware of the new procedure. He was the first surgeon in the world to remove a portion of lung using thoracoscopy and the endo GIA stapler device. Additionally, Dr. Bagnato was among the first surgeons to perform laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication (a procedure used to treat acid reflux and repair a hiatal hernia) and laparoscopic removal of gallstones lodged in the main bile duct.