I was informed by a bariatric surgeon that the bands should be surgically after you reach your goal weight. Not longer than approximately 2 years. My understanding is that it can potentially set you up for problems like erosion if it is in too long due to the band being a foreign object & also deterioration of the band. I was under the impression that the band could be in for several years. I was somewhat perplexed by this information. I was hoping to find that (sweet spot) for the next 20 yrs or so after my goal weight where I would eat just the right amounts of food in order to avoid gaining or loosing weight. The surgeon informed me that by the time bandsters reach their goal, they will know how to eat and it will become habitual. (Why am I doubting this?) I know how I should eat already & I have'nt been able to make it one of my better habits for the last 50 yrs! What is protocol on band removal and why?

That's interesting. I'm certainly no expert, but I've been under the impression that the band was meant to be permanent ... sort of like breat impants?

The Band is ment to be a permanent implant. If it is removed the restriction is gone and the weight will come back.

I was informed 5 to 7 years.. guess it all depends on who your surgeon is.

Hi Cindy - Wow, I can't believe a doctor told you that! May I ask who it was? All the literature states, and I was told by Dr. Billy who is doing my surgery soon, that the band is designed to POTENTIALLY stay in forever. If you will read the posts here and do some research, you'll find that lots of people have been on the journey relatively problem-free, but other people, for whatever reasons, have had some issues. The problem is, in short, the band has been in use since the 90's in other countries, but only FDA approved here since 2001, so there just aren't many long-term statistics available and it is somewhat a leap of faith in that sense. I mean, I absolutely love my Doctor, Dr. Billy in Ventura and trust in his abilities, but I've also read that you could do everything right and still have issues. You SHOULD BE very perplexed by the information you are being given because it is just not so. The Inamed site is helpful. Yes, you would think that after being banded for some time we would (and do!) learn great habits, but the fact is, and all the literature states this, that upon band removal, the stomach returns to its natural state - and therein lies the good and the bad. With that comes the pre-band appetite, but the fact that it is adjustable, removable, reversible is precisely why this option is really the best weight loss surgery alternative around. I've been doing LOTS of reading, researching and praying about this decision because I know that I am prepared for the positives - who isn't?! But the bottom line is I have to decide - and you for yourself - whether I am prepared for the problems that can happen. This is just my two cents. Big decision. On the one hand, I want to jump in feet first tomorrow, but I too want this to be long term, forever, and THERE ARE NO GUARANTEES.....Sorry for going on so long, but I had to respond to your doctor telling you it will only last like two years and it should be removed after achieving your weight goal. So not true! Good luck - Kim

What I HAVE heard of is folks makng their goal weight and having all their fill removed. Can we hear form you, Chichigirl?!!! Which I think is a great thing to do down the road and you learn to maintain your goal weight. Some folks need alot of years to do that!! I hope I die a really old happy lady with a band around my belly!

I've also been told by some of the most experienced band surgeons in the U.S. that it is designed to be a permanent implant. Of course there may be reasons for removal, but would anyone suggest removing an artificial hip joint when the patient learns to walk again? The presence of the band is what will help me maintain my weight loss for the next 40 years, so I am NEVER going to have it removed unless I must.

First Ive heard of this.

I was told by my surgeon that it was permanent.

(But my mind tells me that it may not be.)

I remember Marie/New Hope telling us about a baraitric nurse she encountered that has had her band for 10 years now - A bariatric nurse in Houston Texas. TEN years - same band!

Have you heard what other banding surgeons are saying about this subject?

I would get another opinion .

I was also told to regard the band as permanent.

From a mental preparedness standpoint, I think it's important to look at it this way... If someone did this as a temporary fix, it would be all too easy to approach this as another fad diet instead of a permanent lifestyle change.

permanet was the word I got unless problems also you take it out you gain back the weight old habits die slowly;

My Dr says forever, but who knows? How long have they actualy been around, 15 years or so?

I too was told it was permanent.

I was told that it's not permanent because it can come out, but it should be considered permanent unless something critical happens.

Your doctor is off his rocker!

You have NINETY-SEVEN percent chance of regaining EVERYTHING without your band, if your a statistics person. Heart pacemakers, fake hips, bone screws, they are all foreign objects, and it is safer to keep it in. It's surgical grade and made to stay. The surgery to remove it is equally as dangerous and invasive as it was to place the band. seriously, my doctor said he won't remove them unless there is a major complication...and that is rare with the newer advanced bands.

I bet you could contact Bariatric Medicine (Dr. Schwartz and Drew) at Abbot Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis and get a second opinion, even if you're norwhere local. Just a thought...

Jon

Nope, permanent is permanent. So many of are where we are because we simply don't "feel" full because of our physiologies.

I am curious who your Dr. is and where he is from and how long he has been performing lapband surgeries...

Permanent is what my doc said also.