Hello Everyone,

Yesterday I went for my consultation with my surgeon. He asked me which procedure I was interested in and why. So I told him that I was interested in getting the lap band. He asked me what I knew about the lap band. Then he told me that he would recommend that I get the vertical sleeve rather than the lap band. He stated there are less complications with the vertical sleeve than the lap band (ie band slippage, erosion, and port flipping). He also told me to think about if I lost my health insurance and how would I continue with after care considering after care can entail numerous visits for the rest of my life. He stated with the vertical sleeve weight loss is definitely comparible and in most patients better than the lap band. He stated the vertical sleeve has the same hospital stay and recovery time. I thought I was so sure about the lap band, but know Im leaning toward the vertical sleeve.:smile: Has this happen to anyone else?

Do your own research and come to your own conclusion.

There is a ton of information available on these forums and other places online.

I have a friend who was in a similar situation to the one you describe. His surgeon did both the band and the sleeve but kept trying to convince him to get the sleeve. My friend is not easily swayed and confronted the surgeon as to why he was pushing the sleeve so hard. Finally the surgeon admits that they make more money of the sleeve procedure than the band.

Unfortunately, even surgeons are not totally impartial. You need to do as much research as possible yourself, and then find a surgeon who will do what you want, not what he would like you to want.

I have the band and my mom has the sleeve and we are both doing great. We have both lost a large amount of weight in a pretty brief time period. She's lost roughly 50 lbs in her first 3 months and I have lost roughly 50 lbs in my 4 months. She's down from a size W22 pant to a size regular 12 and I have gone from a size W22 to a size 17 juniors. The major difference between the two of us at the moment is that she can't eat as much as I can and her recovery time was MUCH longer and difficult than mine. I bounced back after surgery and feeling pretty great after 2 days (granted I'm only in my 20s and my mom is edging closer to 50). She took about a week and a half to two weeks to start feeling better. Her progression from liquids to solids after surgery also took a much longer time than mine. She was stuck on the liquid phase 3x longer than I was. She's doing great now and looks totally awesome. The biggest problem she has is just TONS of loose skin. My skin isn't as tight as it used to be but it appears to be bouncing back pretty nicely.

Summary from our experience:

Lap-band has a quicker recovery time although you might have some food restrictions that you may not have with the sleeve. It is adjustable, so if you feel that you can still eat way too much all you have to do is get another fill. However you can outstreatch your pouch, have band errosion, or have a flipped port.

Sleeve you lose weight faster but have a very slow recovery time. With faster weight lose you have a greater chance at having looser skin. You can eat whatever you like. However you still have the chance of restretching your stomach back out and you may not learn all of the "good" eating habits because you can eat almost anything. Thus, counter-acting all of the progress you have made.

Keep in mind that there are known patients who have converted from the band to the sleeve and those who have converted from the sleeve to the band.

Just do your research and try to figure out what would work out best for you!

I chose lap-band because it's reverseable and I have a problem with over eating so I need something to help me restrict my food intake without me "starving" all of the time. I also love the idea that I can get a fill or have the fill removed due to pregnancy.

Mom chose the sleave because she travels throughout the US all of the time and can't waste time going to a doctor every month for a check-up or a fill.

This happened to me i was super set on the lap band saw my surgeon and realized it really isn't the best option for me. the only reason why i chose the lap band ( well tell u that and why i chose against it)

1) be able to let out for pregnancy

my doctor said they dont let it out for pregnancy since you dont need to eat alot of food to have a baby they put you on a high Protein diet.

2) reversible-

Ive had a eating problem my whole life if i have it taken out i know i will get huge again due to ability to eat more. i dont want it to be reversed. ALSO your having a tight band being sown in to ur stomach.. do you really think that wont have a permanent effect anyways.

3) FACTS-

i am not saying people dont lose weight on lap band but look at Europeans they were the ones who started this... they dont want to do this anymore.

4) slippage, loss of insurance, eroding, wearing out, fills-

it just seemed to much for me to handle . i dont want this plastic in my body.

in the end it is always up to you. my doctor told me he do whatever one i wanted and gave me info on all. losing weight is difficult to begin with but i only want one surgery.

good luck with what ever you chose . research both before making a decision . Im going with the bypass after being set on lap-band for a year. i feel that if the lapband was really right for me i wouldnt have second guessed so many times. ( i went back and forth for a while)

I had this exact same situation. My dr wanted to do the sleeve because they only like to recommend the band for people whose BMI is 50 or less (mine was around 53). They also said that when they remove the part of your stomach it takes out the hunger horomone, so I will not feel as hungry. Also, with me being so young (Im 23) they arent sure if this would last 50+ years (bc it hasnt been around that long). The sleeve did scare me a bit, but I felt that if they wouldnt sign off on the band then it was a better option, and we submitted it to the insurance. They didnt approve it, so my dr's had me back, trying to convience me that they would do a bypass, found I had lost weight, and said that I could do the band because I had shown initiative and control.

The reasons I liked the band over sleeve:

1. band is less invasive. 5 cuts and thats it. I can go back to work in 5 days, and can still live a normal life (i.e. chasing around my 1 year old daughter). With the sleeve I had to wait 2 weeks, and avoid picking my daughter up at all cost because there is a high risk of hernias

2. THe band gives me more sense of being in control. I can feel when I need a fill, or when I need something removed. With the sleeve its an "i hope this is right" thing.

3. the fix is easier if anything goes wrong. With the band, if you have problems (flipping, erosion, slippage, etc) its another small surgery to fix those things. The main concern with the sleeve is thatit will tighten (or harden) up and prevent you from being able to eat. They hafta go in and fix it, but that process sounds scary to me.

If I had the ability to do make every thing ideal (Insurance pay for it, a live in nanny to help with my daughter, riches so I didnt have to go back to work) I might have actually chosen the sleeve. But, when I think about it, the band is more pratical for me. if your gut (hehe, there's a small pun in there) tells you to go for the sleeve, I say go for it! Do whats right for you!

Thanks everyone for your responses. According to may doctor and his staff as of 11/1/10 the sleeve will be covered by my insurance. So I'm going with the sleeve. All of the research I have done leads me to the sleeve. There is a big population of bandsters that have got there band removed and opted for the sleeve. The medical sites that I have looked at said the sleeve is more than likely going to eventually replace the band due to the bands complications, the average success rate, and patients not having to deal with a foreign object in their body. The surgery sounds scary when I think about part my stomach being cut and removed, but it is almost just as scary to think about remaining the size I am or bigger and the complications that come with obesity.

According to may doctor and his staff as of 11/1/10 the sleeve will be covered by my insurance.

Do you mind telling us who your insurance is? I'm this close to having surgery, and my insurance won't pay for the sleeve, but they will pay for the band. I'd prefer the sleeve, if insurance will pay for it.

Dave

I have BCBS of MI.

Thanks. (Dang it. Not the right one... )

Dave

Dave maybe you can ask your insurance coordinator at your surgeons office if your insurance will cover the band anytime soon?

Dave maybe you can ask your insurance coordinator at your surgeons office if your insurance will cover the band anytime soon?

Unfortunately, that conversation was held about two weeks ago. (And I called my insurance company again this past Friday to ask again.) I went for a consult specifically to get sleeved. During the marathon appointments that day (psych, physician, nutritionist, and surgeon back to back on the same day) I learned my insurance won't pay for sleeve unless it's performed at a military treatment facility. The closest one of those is several hours from my home, on the other side of several major cities (think: "lots of traffic.") This surgeon is about an hour away, so is much closer.

The answer I haven't been able to get, either from the insurance coordinator or from Tricare directly, is why will they pay for it at a military treatment facility, but not at the Tricare-approved civilian surgery center TRICARE SENT ME TO BECAUSE IT WAS CLOSER TO MY HOME! They will pay for band or RNY bypass, and even stomach stapling, which my surgeon says nobody does anymore because it doesn't work. But not sleeve. Makes absolutely no sense to me.

Dave

Well prayfully you will have lots of success with the band without any complications. Good Luck

lap band is safer

Hello Everyone,

He also told me to think about if I lost my health insurance and how would I continue with after care considering after care can entail numerous visits for the rest of my life.

Follow-up visits with a band are more numerous during the first year post-op. Every surgical patient will have some post-op visits.

I'll be three years next February. I had a tiny fill in early September of this year, and an upper GI just before that to check that all is well (it is).

Prior to that, I had not seen my band surgeon for a year. Prior to that it had been about 9 or 10 months.

Unless you have complications, the band does not have much more follow-up than other procedures after you get proper restriction. My surgeon wants me to check in once a year. If I did not have insurance, the upper GI would have been costly, I am sure. It could be a consideration, depending on your circumstances.

I believe long-term (2-3 years, that is) weight loss rates for both procedures is about the same.

I lost 100% of my excess body weight with the band in about 2 years.

Here's a link to a good comparison chart of different procedures:

Weight Loss Surgery Comparison | WLS Basics | Weight Loss Surgery

So far the lap band has not worked for me. At almost a year postop I still have no restriction. At one point I was overfilled, so we dropped back on the fill and are now going up again in smaller increments, hoping I just passed that sweet spot. All I know at this point is that I went from no restriction to getting stuck on everything. No middle ground.

I'm seriously considering getting the band taken out and having the sleeve done if I still have no restriction in 2 months.

.

Your doctor raises good questions, but sounds as though he was doing a bit of a hard sell. This is likely because he is enthusiastic about an exciting newer procedure that yes, is promising--but also is probably a bit more fun for him, because it's ...well, exciting and newer.

There are lots of good reasons to have a sleeve. Similarly, there are lots of good reasons to choose the band. Each has advantages and disadvantages. The long-term information about the sleeve is sparser, though--so you have to take his long-range prognostication with a tiny grain of salt.

For me, the decision was based on:

a. invasiveness/degree of body modification

b. adjustability

c. INSURANCE COVERAGE--the sleeve is an absolute no-go, in terms of many insurers' coverage

d. potential reversibility/ability to revise

Your criteria may be different than mine; you will have to do your own research and determine what is best for you. I am very happy with my band, and would do it again in a New York minute. OTOH, if I were to develop problems and require replacement or revision, I would consider the sleeve, if it were covered by insurance.

Just remember that every doctor, like every human, has his own opinions--and that they might not be right for YOU. Only you can determine what will work best in your life.