Does anyone know if a person that has had a heart attack can have this procedure done?

*waving my hand here* I had had a heart attack and 4 stents for heart blockages over a 4 years period. I was sure I wouldn't qualify for the band because of my heart, high blood pressure, diabetes, etc etc etc......but I did. And it has made all the difference in the world in my health and my life. I've been banded two years and recently had to have another stent but it was just a result of heredity and 60 years of absue to my body.....nothing to do with my band or current diet. I'm recovering quickly and feel great. :smile2:

You will probably want the input of your cardiologist. If you do not have blockages now, or you do not have an arrhythmia, or if your EF% is ok, you should have no problem. He may also help get you a referral...the more doctors that refer you, the better!

I'll leave this to your cardiologist for the final answer, but I am also a heart attack survivor with one stent. One of the reasons I had lap band as opposed to GNY, was my surgeon felt it was the safer option.

Thta is wonderful to know. The cardiologist is telling me I can do this myself without the band. He is not obese nor has he ever been. No clue. 120 to drop is a little different than 30 on South Beach Diet. If I have been struggling for 7 years with this battle and have not yet won, it's time for round 2. My EF is in the 30s so I need to get that back up first before the surgery. The weight loss will be the best thing for this condition. Gotta get it off. Thanks for your feed back!

Heather, time for get another Cardiologist. This one sounds like he's and he has not idea what it is to be overweight and how hard it is to lose the weight. You may like him for other reasons but there are a ton of heart doctors out there just as good if not better and more understanding of your life.

You just need the clearance that you will be ok for surgery. I don't know what the EF requirements are for lap band, but with it being a laproscopic procedure, you may be ok. It will improve with weight loss. If you talk with him again, make sure you make it clear to him that you know this is not the easy way out. That it is a tool and you are trying to get healthier...you want the lapband so that you can exercise more to get healthier. You may want to do some research on weight loss and CHF and lapband and improved cardiac function and hand it to him. Doctors like to know that you are educated on the pros and cons of the surgery.

Good luck!

It was my cardiologist that first brought up wls to me. When I went to my PCP for the recommendation letter, he wrote the surgeon a letter saying, "she needs to try weight watchers.' I was furious!! Like I hadn't tried WW and every other @#%#@ diet in the last 40 years!! I went back to my cardiolgist and he wrote my letter for me. It has saved my life.

I have a friend whose cardiologist and kidney specialist and PCP and endocrinologist are all ganging up on her right now and begging her to have wls and are being very blunt....do it or you're going to die - soon. She is still refusing, saying "I can do this on my own." She can't. She weighs 400 lbs, and is almost a total invalid. I understand her fear of having yet another surgery, but I was was more afraid of dying before my time than I was of surgery. It has prolonged my life and, even more importantly, has given me a great quality of life.

I, too, am a heart attack survivor with 2 stents. My pCP was waiting for me to bring up WLS and then once she realized I was serious, she was gung ho. She has been my doctor for 16+ years, so she has seen my weight yo yo and had seen me battle the different comorbidities. But before I could have the surgery, the anesthisiologist required me to have all the proper tests (stress test, angiogram, EKG, etc.) to make sure I was oK for the surgery. Then once that was all complete, I had my surgery. I am a very happy camper.

I still take all my meds, but I have been told that the more weight I lose, I will probably have to have my meds changed. But for now, I'm feeling really good. Just be sure to follow your Dr. recommendations. Keep the line of communication open with each of your Dr.s and, if you have one, your nutritionist. They know what's best.

Of course, keeping in touch with your support groups and on sites like this one is also a big help. There are a lot of people out there with good advice and they are also great at providing lots of encouragement.

Good luck!