Hi there,

I am looking into getting the lap band and somebody told me today that she was told by a doctor that in 5 - 10 years there are complications of the band growing into the stomach. Has anyone heard of this?:faint:

Well -

I don't think it's a GIVEN that there will be complications. The one where the stomach absorbs the band is called Erosion.

It may be more frequent after 5-10 yrs - But I don't think its automatic or anything.

It's really hard to say, since the surgery is fairly new in terms of long-term studies, and since the methods of placing the bands has changed over time to help avoid these issues.

If you want to look into some of the research - here are a couple of links to the scientific journals. Your doc may or may not be up on the latest info - but these journals should have what there is to know.

Just be sure to put Gastric Band in your search parameters.

You don't have to pay for the full article - that would get expensive, really fast. All you need to see is the Abstract. (Sorry, if you already know this) An abstract is just a summary of the whole study. Abstracts are usually available at no charge.

Surgical Endoscopy Journal (top left - click advanced search)

http://www.springerlink.com/(z4pevg45anqvji55qg1wm2mf)/app/home/main.asp?referrer=default

Obesity Surgery Journal

http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/09608923

Misc. Medical Journals:

http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/searchall/

Hugs!!

thanks Renebean, I'll check into those sites.

just to let you know i have had my band on for 6 years and eariler this year i had to have my gallbladder out and when they did they checked my band and it is still like new and hasent even moved so that might help you

I have decided not to worry about this problem either. I think about all the thousands of ppl who walk around with artificial parts in them. Band is not the only surgery. There is heart surgery, with plastic valve replacement. Knee and hip surgery with plastic replacment parts. Plastic "shunts" for children with hydrocephalis. All these ppl have plastic or artificial parts in place. Some have complications.....some don't....I don't think its a given....I guess I feel like its just more the luck of the draw.

Per my Dr.: The band is made to last forever.

It sound as if the band that you are referring to needs attention and I am thinking that it is definately not the expected only after 10 years.

I don't want to be a downer here, but in looking at more long-term studies out of Europe, it's not real encouraging. Many doctors who were initially really big on the band are now abandoning it because of long-term complications and failure... it's enough to make me decide to pursue other avenues, especially being potentially self-pay.

tell me more please..... where can I go to do some research on this, I am seeing my surgeon on Monday and I want to present this to him.

What type of bands do they use in Europe? I know here and in Mexico, they only use Inamed brand and won't use anything else.

Taninoz ::: Way to go thanks for posting those good news results!!!

My mother is 6 1/2 years out with her lap band, I"m guessing she was one of the first. She had it done in Houston in 2001 and has so far had no complications.

i was banded in europe ( france)

i have swedish adjustable gastric band sagb. its a 11 cc band if thats any help babygotback

I agree with the posts above that there are many, many people walking around with artificial parts inside, but I also look at the fact that about the worse thing that can happen in the future is having the band removed. Step 1-get the band. Step 2-lose the weight. Step 3-live happily ever after. If something gets in the way of step 3, like a complication that requires band removal....OK, I can deal with that. What I can't deal with is the extra 100 pounds (and the resulting health problems) for the rest of my life, and the fact that, if I chose another WLS method, I don't even have any options left. The malabsorption features of the other methods terrify me.........I can't imagine a healthy 90-year-old RNY person, but with lapband or even band removal I can envision a healthy older person. I want to be a healthy grandma and great-grandma. The potential risks of the lapband are so minor when compared to what my life might be like without it. (And I'm not even banded yet.)

Amen, Clickersister! There is a RNyer on another Obesity related site I belong to who is slowly dying...her doctor wants to reroute her and give her a lapband. She was on the lapband site looking for others with similar experiences, unfortunately, she couldn't find any.