I was banded on 3rd Sept 2008, I have 8.5ml in a 9ml band I finally have good restriction but would just like to know what is the maximum cc(mls) the band will hold.

I attended a seminar given by a Realize Band rep last August, and someone asked the same question. The rep said there was room for over-fill.

I had an appointment with my doctor for a fill two weeks ago, and we were talking about the max fill amount too. He also said that there was room in the band for an over-fill. We didn't talk about the amount though.

I have a friend who has a lap band, and hasn't been able to get restriction, and she also has an over-fill. She has a little less than 1cc over.

At my last fill I was expressing my anxiety over being at 8cc (with a Realize band) with no real restriction. My doctor said they have patients at 10cc and even 11cc. They prefer not to go that high, but they will. But I would think every doctor will have different limits.

He filled me to 9cc that day, that was almost 3 weeks ago and I have great restriction now. Things are going great, but the 5+ months it took to get to restriction were hard.

There is no such thing as "every doctor has different limits" The FDA guidelines for all gastric bands are there for a reason.

The band instructions specifically states several times NOT to fill it past 9cc's or it can break. Posting something like that can be very dangerous and should not be rationalized.

The max fill is 9cc's. PERIOD.

If it breaks and was filled past 9cc's your insurance company reserves the right not to replace it as it was not used within FDA guidelines. The Surgeon can practice medicine as he sees fit however your insurance company will always look for an out not to pay.

I understand your frustration but to protect yourself,get it in writing from the surgeon and your insurance company that if the band is filled past the FDA guidelines if it breaks your surgery will be covered under a revision. This way your at least covered. If you have no restriction now imagine if leaks all the Fluid out!

So now you're an insurance expert as well?

In the short time I've been here it is VERY easy to see who the clueless one's really are.

There is no such thing as "every doctor has different limits" The FDA guidelines for all gastric bands are there for a reason.

The band instructions specifically states several times NOT to fill it past 9cc's or it can break. Posting something like that can be very dangerous and should not be rationalized.

The max fill is 9cc's. PERIOD.

If it breaks and was filled past 9cc's your insurance company reserves the right not to replace it as it was not used within FDA guidelines. The Surgeon can practice medicine as he sees fit however your insurance company will always look for an out not to pay.

I understand your frustration but to protect yourself,get it in writing from the surgeon and your insurance company that if the band is filled past the FDA guidelines if it breaks your surgery will be covered under a revision. This way your at least covered. If you have no restriction now imagine if leaks all the Fluid out!

Why don't you show us where the FDA tells Allergan and J&J what limits they have for the fills on bands.

We'll wait.

Also, show us where the insurance company says that if you overfill a band they will not pay for a replacement due to this reason.

We'll wait for that, too.

Then take a lesson in pharmaceutical companies. They write things to cover their collective butts. Doctors overfill bands all the time and why? Because the newer bands are too big and people are not getting proper restriction. They have no choice.

Since you are an expert in what doctors do vs. what the FDA suggests, why don't you explain Off Label Use for. You are passing yourself off as an expert on bloody everything (being the PACU transport person that you are) so do tell us how doctors can utilize off label use.

We'll wait for this as well but we know it will never happen, will it?

I believe Rockbandster has decided to leave the forum.

ok, I'm not the insurance expert, I will give you that, but the checking idea doesn't sound so bad to me...I do know that insurance companies will look for loop holes and I'm wondering if I allow a MD to fill beyond the capacity of the band am I putting myself at risk for payment? I have also wondered about fill centers for that reason as well. If I go and get more fill at a fill center and my port tubing gets messed up or something, who is responsible for that? anyone know?

ok, I'm not the insurance expert, I will give you that, but the checking idea doesn't sound so bad to me...I do know that insurance companies will look for loop holes and I'm wondering if I allow a MD to fill beyond the capacity of the band am I putting myself at risk for payment? I have also wondered about fill centers for that reason as well. If I go and get more fill at a fill center and my port tubing gets messed up or something, who is responsible for that? anyone know?

The end result will be that you are responsible. Right, wrong, or indifferent, you will be.

There is a person here with a faulty Inamed band, there is a leak at the area of the band (not port or tubing) and there isn't a thing she can do about it other than to self pay to have the band removed and a sleeve done in place.

I have seen FIVE people post over the last couple of years (between LBT and OH) that their US surgeon (different surgeon in each case) put the band around a wad of fat instead of their actual stomach and not a single one of the five could even get a lawyer to take the case. It wasn't worth enough. One had the band replaced by insurance, one had the band removed via self pay, the other three I do not know the end result.

If you get an infection from a bad fill there is no way to prove it was the fill, you pay again unless you have insurance. Then if you have ins but not WLS coverage... hard telling.

Let's say that you have a 10cc band and you have no restriction at 10cc. What are you going to do? Just not allow the band to work so you don't harm the band? Or get a fill and try to work your band?

I've been on these boards a long time and on other boards as well and I've *never* seen an insurance company even ask how much fill you have in your band, let alone care. Plus Allergen (lap-bands) bands get overfilled just as much as Realize bands. Which is to say -- not that much.

WASA,

Do you have a link to info on the sleeve similar to what you've done for Mexican MDs?

WASA,

Do you have a link to info on the sleeve similar to what you've done for Mexican MDs?

I will as soon as I send it to Alex. I asked him if he wanted a copy and he said yes. Someone is editing it for me now. Let's face it, we ALL know how *I* spell. ;o)

I look forward to reading and learning.

I look forward to reading and learning.

I sent it to a few docs for their input. Some I agreed with and some I did not. One wanted to do this surgery on an O/P basis, I do not agree with that so I didn't change it. I found that 80% of leaks are discovered in the first 24 hours so I left it that one needs to be hospitalized for at least 24 hours. I'd rather error on the side of caution.

Now someone is just checking my spelling and grammar. She's a reg here and does this for a living. I need her help. ;o)

I'm also looking forward to reading your info, Wasa. A very good friend of mine has had a band for two + years, and even though she's over max full, she never had good restriction. She lost 25 lbs off pure determination, but has never lost anymore. She lives in another state, and I haven't had the heart to tell her that I got a band, and that I've been doing well. I'll see her in the summer, and I kind of feel like it'll just be rubbing salt in the wound because it has worked for me, at least so far. I talked to her about the band prior to me getting mine, and that's the last I mentioned it to her. At that time, she said she was considering gastric bypass, but I think a sleeve is something she really ought to look into.

A good friend of mine went to see a weight loss surgeon who does all types. He told my friend (male, 6', 425 pounds) that the sleeve was "not as effective" as the band or the bypass. Several others heard the same thing from their surgeons. Since the sleeve done today is different than those performed in the past, I think it's important to get accurate info "out there" to people looking for alternatives to the band.