Sleeve vs. Lap Band

[time2enjoylife 0]

Hello all!,

I have been considering lap band for a little over a year now. I recently changed my mind, and am now considering the sleeve. I would love to hear from those who have had both. Can you give me your opinions about the two? So far my research has shown that the sleeve has better results, and less complications than the lap band. Thanks for your input! :lol0:

[Malaika 50]

Hello all!,

I have been considering lap band for a little over a year now. I recently changed my mind, and am now considering the sleeve. I would love to hear from those who have had both. Can you give me your opinions about the two? So far my research has shown that the sleeve has better results, and less complications than the lap band. Thanks for your input! :lol0:

Waiting on WasA, Tiffykins, Ruthi, Elisabethsew and MacMadame ... if you have any questions after that, I can't even imagine what they would be. Welcome to VST!

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

MacMadame researched the band and went straight to sleeve.

The band is a pain in the you know what. I wish I had known about the sleeve from the beginning. Getting your fill right is no easy task. You don't really lose weight until you have restriction, and you don't get that right away with the band like you do with the sleeve. I didn't have band problems until I had it almost 2 years, and I got to goal with the band, but once the band problems start, they won't stop.

I am sure WasA and Elizabeth will elaborate but I can tell you to avoid the band and get the sleeve. I have talked several of my friends out of getting the band and getting the sleeve.

There are quite a few threads already, I do believe, explaining why the band sucks.

[MacMadame 81]

MacMadame researched the band and went straight to sleeve.

Yep.

I was afraid of the sleeve at first because of the permanency. I knew people who had WLS and had horrible problems and so I thought I wanted something that I could reverse if that happened to me. But I realized over time that WLS is permanent, even the band (if you take it out -- you regain) and also that the horrible problems that people with bands get are all *caused* by the band. It's not like bypass where people have problems caused by Vitamin deficiencies.

The other thing I learned from watching people with bands is:

-not everyone gets restriction. Without restriction, the band doesn't work. I didn't want to pay all that money and then still be hungry all the time. I could do that without having surgery!

-even people who follow all the rules and never do anything wrong have problems with their bands like slippage

-while the sleeve has more serious complications upfront than a band, the band has many, many more long-term problems. Overall, I think the sleeve is actually safer than a band when you look 10 years out

-the upkeep of the band would eventually frustrate me and I'd be bad about getting fills and unfills the farther out I got

-weight loss with a sleeve is better on average and definitely faster on average. That's very motivating.

-while the band would be cheaper in the short run, it would end up costing just as much as a sleeve in the long run

-the resurgery rate with a band is quite high and I'm old enough that I only wanted one WLS surgery

[Tiffykins 673]

Hello all!,

I have been considering lap band for a little over a year now. I recently changed my mind, and am now considering the sleeve. I would love to hear from those who have had both. Can you give me your opinions about the two? So far my research has shown that the sleeve has better results, and less complications than the lap band. Thanks for your input! :biggrin0:

I had my band placed October 1, 2008. I had complications with my port from the beginning, but my old surgeon ignored my complaints and requests for months. I did lose weight initially with the band only due to the liquid phase diet, and restriction I had from swelling. Once I started getting fills, problems with the port became more apparent. My port had flipped within 3 months of surgery date. I had chronic pain and when I say pain I mean level 6-8 pain on a daily basis, I couldn't bend over my washing machine to get the clothes out, my husband and I could not be intimate on certain days, in certain positions, the port moved and would cause the tubing to "tug" on my actual stomach. It was pure hell. I started researching revision in February, and knew that I would have to change surgeons because mine was completely inept to my concerns. My quality of life was piss poor to say the least, and I was so tired of being in pain every day of my life.

The first week of March, I went in for a fill under fluoro with my original surgery, he couldn't get it under fluoro, now mind you I have not had restriction since before Christmas and am gaining weight back that I had lost. Even with 3 fills, I still had no restriction. Anyways, I finally decided that something had to be done. My husband is Active duty military, so I had to navigate through the HMO insurance system, but did get the referral I wanted to a surgeon who I had heard great things about, did my research, went in for a consult, and told him my story. He wanted to just reposition the port, but I told him, it's more than my port now. It's the band is actually being pulled, and I want the band out.

He agreed to do the revision. I had revision surgery on June 3rd, and couldn't be happier. The surgeon removed a great deal of scar tissue, and he said I had several adhesions to the tubing of the band. I only had my band for 8 months, I can't imagine having it in there for years, the damage that would of been done to my stomach scares me to no end.

No one could pay me to get another band in my body. The sleeve made me nervous at first since 3/4 of my stomach would be gone, but the band scared me more. I knew that I would never reach my weight goals, I would be in constant pain, and the band would eventually cause me more grief.

I am in that 1% of the sleeve population to have a leak. BUT, leaks are three times more likely to happen with a revision, plus, I had a lot of damage to my stomach tissue from the band. I don't regret getting the revision, leak and all, I'm pleased with the sleeve thus far, and have a long road to recovery, and am looking forward to this new journey.

[Elisabethsew 50]

The ladies who responded before me gave you great information and I agree with them. Once you have the VSG surgery, you're done. You don't have a foreign device in your body, you don't have to wait to heal for it to work, you don't have to have fills and unfills, etc.

What you need to determine is what surgery is right for you. Are you a relatively healthy eater who eats too much? If yes, restriction alone procedures include the band and the VSG. Are you a candy eater and a high calorie consumer? If so, gastric bypass (RNY) or duodenal switch (DS) might be the right way to go. They not only restrict but also malabsorb so you eat less and less of what you do eat gets absorbed.

DS is for very high BMI patients and VSG is often the first stage of the DS.

[WASaBubbleButt 41]

Hello all!,

I have been considering lap band for a little over a year now. I recently changed my mind, and am now considering the sleeve. I would love to hear from those who have had both. Can you give me your opinions about the two? So far my research has shown that the sleeve has better results, and less complications than the lap band. Thanks for your input! :confused1:

The band sucks.

If you are into living on liquids the band is great but most prefer to chew their food. ;o) You are on a liquid diet post op (as with all procedures), you are on liquids with each fill, you are on liquids each time you get stuck. If you get a stuck episode you drink liquids only for the rest of the day. If it was a bad stuck episode you are on liquids for a few days. If you slip, dilate your pouch or esophagus... liquids for several weeks.

Weight loss is slow, it is low, long term risks and complications are great in number. You still pump out Ghrelin with a band, you have to wait for months to get good restriction and then it is not typically permanent. You have to have aftercare for life.

It's embarrassing to get stuck in public. You go to lunch with friends and have to go the bathroom to foam, slime, and puke until you are unstuck.

EVERYTHING affects restriction, absolutely everything. Time of day, time of month, food temp, outdoor weather, altitude, stress, hydration, everything. With the sleeve it's pretty much the same all the time. The only thing I have noticed a difference with is if I drink an iced drink before a meal I have a lot more restriction. It's as though my stomach does not relax to expand a bit to hold food. I use that! If I want to cut back on food I drink ice Water before a meal. ;o)

Sleeves are a much easier journey all the way around.

Bands suck. (Hope Alex isn't reading... heh)

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

I love how you put that so eloquently, WASa!

I'll have to remember that ice Water trick!

[serious 2]

I am a band to sleeve revision. For me, the sleeve not only provides restriction, but my tastes have changed. I am past three months post op, so I don't see that changing.

Anyway, my point being, that pre sleeve I was a big time sweet eater. I could eat sweets all day long and I loved candy. I would eat candy everyday. When I had the band, that was a recipe for disaster since the band allows you to eat slider foods and didn't affect my sweet tooth therefore I gained weight.

With the sleeve, I cannot tolerate anything too sweet. I am finally able to do what all the diet books advise; I can eat maybe a bite of something sweet when I do get a sweet craving, then I'm done. It's like miracle.

I never considered the RNY because there are way too many people reporting complications that never seem to end on the complications forum on OH. Also, I only had about 60 # to lose. I am a little over 3 months out and am now only 20# from goal.

[Malaika 50]

I love how you put that so eloquently, WASa!

I'll have to remember that ice Water trick!

Make sense as cold causes restriction and warm causes expansion.

I'll remember that trick, too, when I actually get to eat food again :laugh0:

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

I wish my sweet tooth would go away. My boss had these fabulous chocolate truffles at work. The deal is though, that I can eat a couple of them and not gain weight because I am doing 130 cal. Protein Drinks for Breakfast and lunch.< /p>

[Malaika 50]

I wish my sweet tooth would go away. My boss had these fabulous chocolate truffles at work. The deal is though, that I can eat a couple of them and not gain weight because I am doing 130 cal. Protein drinks for breakfast and lunch.

LOL ... you're too funny.

And here I was sitting watching Bob eat a nice big fresh salad and wishing I could have one too -- I LOVE salads

[Tiffykins 673]

LOL ... you're too funny.

And here I was sitting watching Bob eat a nice big fresh salad and wishing I could have one too -- I LOVE salads

I couldn't eat salads with the band until the very end when I didn't have any restriction, and even then lettuce was not a good thing for me. . . I can't wait until I can have salad and actually enjoy it.

[Malaika 50]

I couldn't eat salads with the band until the very end when I didn't have any restriction, and even then lettuce was not a good thing for me. . . I can't wait until I can have salad and actually enjoy it.

This from the same lady that said by the 22nd dirty bathwater would sound appealing.

[MacMadame 81]

I love salads too. Plus veggies and fruit are sweet.

I hate that people tell you "oh, if you have a sweet tooth, get RnY". I don't think it's that simple. I have a sweet tooth in that I prefer sweet to salty, but I can eat 1-2 bites of a chocolate and be fine and my tastes have definitely changed since surgery as well.