Hi my name is Kathy, I am 43 and was banded on 3-21-09. I found out on 10-10-10 that my band had slipped. I am very upset, because it has helped my to lose 68 lbs. Dr. Treen in Louisiana, has told me I can have it repositioned, removed, or changed to sleevectomy. Well before this I heard nothing of sleevectomy. I don't know what way to go, and I am scared because it is PERMANANT. Also the complications don't sound so nice either. If anyone out there would like to comment on anything I would greatly appreiciate it. Thanks so much. Have a HEALTHY and HAPPY weekend.

My gosh Kathy, read on! This forum has tons of examples of people who have revised from band... and had very good success. The side effects from the band can be far worse then the vertical sleeve. Put "Band revision" in the search and read away.

Also the complications don't sound so nice either.

Which complications are you meaning? I have heard of more complications with the band than I have for the sleeve.

Lily

I am having a band to sleeve revison due to a small slip and broken tubing. My doctor says that once your band has slipped there is a VERY HIGH chance it will happen again. When I was waiting for my endoscope, I met a girl who was in for her second slip. She was hoping her doctor could fix it, but when he went in, she had to have her band taken out. She was in tears when we woke up together in recovery and the nurse told her. I felt so bad for her. If you research, you will see the evidence of all the horrible issues that having a lapband long (and in some cases short) term can have. My advice is to have the sleeve, but I guess my opinion will be a little more validated after my surgery on December 20. Good luck!

Life with the sleeve is so much easier, and no issues with getting fills/unfills etc.

As for a band slippage, statistically, once you've had one, your risks for another one apparently triples. So, while the sleeve maybe "permanent" what is the damage being done to your stomach band considered, surely that damage isn't always reversible or "fixable"? I thought about this when I started having issues with my band. Do your research, complications are minimal with the sleeve, and weight loss is so much easier because it's instant, permanent restriction. If you'll go to my profile (click on my name on this post) add me as friend, you can read my blog for specific research articles on the sleeve, personal stories, dietary guidelines, and tons of research links at your disposal. I don't miss my band or the slew of issues that came with it.

<br />My gosh Kathy, read on! This forum has tons of examples of people who have revised from band... and had very good success. The side effects from the band can be far worse then the vertical sleeve. Put "Band revision" in the search and read away.<br />

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Hi Kathy,

I hope you make the decision that is best for you and your body. I also have the band and it needs to come out. My band is almost 10 years

old so instead of having my band completely taken out, my dr. is going to replace it with a new band (depending on the shape my stomach is in once he's in there) but I'm keeping my new port and tubing and I'm either going to have a gastric plication or the sleeve. I haven't decided

which way to go yet either. When I spoke with my band dr. he normally recommends the bypass but I'm unable to have that plus I wouldn't get

it anyway if I could (I think). He doesn't recommend the sleeve and doesn't do many of them mainly because he thinks the leak rate is too high, even though he is a very skilled surgeon he doesn't like the sleeve. I went to a different bariatric dr. who is also very well-known in southern Cali and skilled and he also doesn't really recommend the sleeve. So now I'm really confused. I was leaning towards the sleeve but now that I know about the gastric plication, I am leaning more towards that. My main concern with the plication is that there is no long term data. The longest term

data I could find was between 3-5 years out. I was very happy with my band until about 7 years out, so I'm not real comfortable with the limited amount of information as my own data would show good progress at 3-5 years out.

Anyway - do lots of research, ask lots of questions and good luck to you.

genepha

In my opinion, the band is "evil" and I am SO glad to have all that plastic out of my body. Life with the sleeve has been nothing but easy and I've finally been able to reach goal. Please research to find the best doctor no matter what you decide. My surgeon, who also did my band, has done thousands of laproscopic surgeries. I called his office and asked for his stats and they were happy to give them to me. They told me how many of each type of surgery he's done, his complication rate, leakage rate, number of deaths, etc. Any doctor that won't give you that information is trying to hide something.

I can honestly say getting the VSG is one of the best decisions I've made in my life. I feel so healthy now and all my former co-morbidities are gone. I can eat fruit, salads, and lots of other healthy foods that always got stuck in my band. You've come to the right place to get good information to help with your decision. Good luck!

I had 5 years worth of problems with my band. Take it my sleeve experience was rough (mentally) but now that it's done I wouldn't undo it even if I could! The reality is you tried the band, it's not working. In my case the Lap Band has done permanent damage to my esophagus. The human body is not made to have such a heavy clunky thing on you esophagus. As many people point out, the Sleeve has done for me everything that the Lap Band promised. I was banded in 2005, I challenge you to find folks who were banded near the same time I was who is still happy and not having problems and successful. I'm not saying having most of your stomach is not a big deal, but if I knew then what I know now, I would have skipped the band and had the sleeve done instead.

I had 5 years worth of problems with my band. Take it my sleeve experience was rough (mentally) but now that it's done I wouldn't undo it even if I could! The reality is you tried the band, it's not working. In my case the Lap Band has done permanent damage to my esophagus. The human body is not made to have such a heavy clunky thing on you esophagus. As many people point out, the Sleeve has done for me everything that the Lap Band promised. I was banded in 2005, I challenge you to find folks who were banded near the same time I was who is still happy and not having problems and successful. I'm not saying having most of your stomach is not a big deal, but if I knew then what I know now, I would have skipped the band and had the sleeve done instead.

Hi Carrie, I'm so glad to hear you're feeling better about your sleeve!!! I'm an ex bandster and the sleeve for me is WAY better. An eternity better!!