I have read on here that a lot depends on the bougie size your doctor uses. What in the world is a BOUGIE?

It's a tube of a certain diameter in millimeters. The surgeon puts the bougie in your stomach and uses it as a guide for the stapler, kind of stapling next to it. Not all surgeons use a bougie as a guide--some use an endoscope, but they all, I believe, use something as a guide. They're not stapling your stomach freehand.

Research has shown that complications like strictures and difficult post-op days (nausea, vomiting) are more associated with smaller bougie sizes but larger sizes don't give as much weight loss. So your surgeon has to decide on a happy medium.

Awesome! thanks for the reply

It's a tube of a certain diameter in millimeters. The surgeon puts the bougie in your stomach and uses it as a guide for the stapler, kind of stapling next to it. Not all surgeons use a bougie as a guide--some use an endoscope, but they all, I believe, use something as a guide. They're not stapling your stomach freehand.

Research has shown that complications like strictures and difficult post-op days (nausea, vomiting) are more associated with smaller bougie sizes but larger sizes don't give as much weight loss. So your surgeon has to decide on a happy medium.

There's an interesting youtube vid on bougie size here