Hi all,

Am new to site, which was recommended to me by a U.K. based weight loss surgery website.

Looks like I am crossing over the pond and will be moving to the States (Atlanta, GA) next year. I am scheduled to have the Lap band in England in January 04 and am not sure what to do.

Am considering now having the banding in the US and it looks as though will have to foot the bill myself although I haven't a clue what the cost is approx in the States. Can anybody shed some light or maybe a link? Do you think it is possible I just have fills in the US and the surgery in the UK? Anybody know the cost of a fill everytime you go?

Your help is greatly appreciated.

Warmest regards

Hi Helen,

What a dilemma! But here's my thinking. If I were in your shoes I'd have the band placed in January as scheduled. Even an empty band is better than no band at all, and you could find yourself waiting months or more to get on some surgeon's schedule here once you do move. You'd also have to start all over again with testing, etc.

And while it is indeed harder to find followup care here in the US if you were banded elsewhere, I think you wouldn't face the same prejudices as if you were a US resident who just chose to have surgery elsewhere. You had no choice in the matter. (That may sound odd, but if you were relocating with a hip replacement or other serious condition that needed followup care, you'd be able to find it here without a problem.) As for the cost, well, that varies considerably. Here in NJ my fills would cost about $400 (in a hospital setting, with fluroscopy). I've heard that they can cost $75 on up to $500 depending on lots of factors.

You might contact Inamed to find a Georgia doctor to do fills, or continue asking around the message boards. But starting all over again after you relocate would definitely take much more time, and likely cost a minimum of $25,000 if you're paying for it all yourself.

Hi Helen. I agree that it would probably be easier to get your surgery in the UK and then get fills in the USA.

Just make sure that your surgeon in the UK uses an Inamed lap-band. Apparently a lot of American doctors won't deal with the other bands because they're not FDA approved yet.

British Bandster wannabes:

Ryan Air flies into Treviso Italy for very little dough. Very, very near Drs. Favretti and Segato in Padova...a perfect place and crew to have a lapband placed.

MLK