Lap Band Surgery San Diego
Weight Loss Surgery
Disclaimer – before we start, I want to point out that I’m not a doctor, and I’ve never played one on tv. I am totally unqualified to give you any kind of medical advice. I’m just someone struggling with a weight issue, just like you. I put these together to help you benefit from the research I’ve been doing (and to keep myself accountable).
There are two main types of weight loss surgery- gastric by-pass where they actually cut out part of your stomach, bypass the lower intestine and then hook it all back up together, and the lap band surgery. The lap band is like a ribbon, or balloon that goes around the top of your stomach and is inflated with saline to restrict access to the stomach. Because I’ve decide that I want the lap band, that’s what I’m going to focus on here.
As of Dec 2, 2010, the FDA voted to lower the requirements to qualify for a lap band from a BMI or 40 without any co-morbid factor to a BMI of 35 without and co-morbid factors. For patients with co-morbid factors, the new threshold is 30, whereas it was 35 before.
What are co-morbid factors you ask? Well, they are any health condition that go along with obesity. Some common ones are diabetes, stroke, hypertension, joint problems and sleep apnea.
Beyond the differences in the procedure itself, there are also differences in the rate of weight loss between the band and the bypass. The bypass is better for faster weight loss and a faster reversal of Diabetes, but it may be less effective long term as the new “stomach” could stretch by overeating. The lap-band seems to have a slower rate of weight loss, and better long term results as you can keep the band in, uninflated, and then go in for a fill if you find that you’ve gained some weight back.
So what is the process? Well, it seems that you would start with a consultation with the surgeon, do some lab work, meet with a psychologist and a dietician before getting green lighted for the surgery. I guess they do this so that they can make sure you understand the types of changes you are going to have to make in your eating habits, and also to check that you’re not crazy. Or at least only moderately neurotic and won’t be easily pushed over the edge. I’ve never heard of anyone going postal due to weight loss surgery, but you can never be too careful I guess.
Check with your insurance to see if they’ll cover it. Some insurance will only cover it for the “morbidly obese” (BMI over 40) and not for just “obese” (BMI from 30- 39.9). If you are morbidly obese, make sure you use the “right” terms when asking your insurance if they cover it. Some insurances just won’t cover it at all- in fact, some stupid, short sighted insurances, like mine, specifically exclude weight loss surgery- how dumb is that!? But I digress…. Anyway, if you are one of the lucky ones with good insurance coverage, you may still have to jump through some hoops. You may need to provide medical documentation of 5 yr weight history, actual documentation of diet drugs and/or medically supervised diets, commercial diet program records (weight watchers, medifast, jenny craig, etc- we’ve all done them all haven’t we!?), and excercise program records. How long have YOU been paying for that gym membership you never use? Basically, it seems to me that they want to be able to verify that you have a history of unsuccessful weight loss attempts using other methods and that this is not just a whim for an extra couple of vanity pounds- or something like that…
To prepare for the surgery, you should understand the surgical process and what to expect, understand that you’ll never be able to eat the way you did before (duh- isn’t that the whole point), talk/ network with others who are having or have had the surgery, maybe even start a journal or write a letter to yourself about your reasons and goals for the surgery.
So you’ve gotten all your approvals, done your pre-op diet, and are ready for surgery. What now? They say that you should be able to walk soon after your surgery- that is within hours. The next day you should be able to take care of your own personal needs, but may need help with shopping, lifting and transportation. Once you’re off the pain meds, you can drive again- usually 1-2 weeks post op. Within 6 weeks you should be back to normal activity.
Who can’t get a lap band? If you have the following conditions, you may not be eligible for the surgery; inflammatory disease, ulcers, sever esophagitis or Chrons disease; severe heart or lung disease or any condition that would make surgery risky; problems that could cause bleeding in the espophagas or stomach; portal hypertension; abnormal esophagus, stomach or intestine; an intra-operative gastric injury; cirrhosis; chronic pancreatitus or if you’re pregnant. If you plan to become pregnant after the surgery, that may still be ok, as they will just deflate the band to make sure that you eat enough for the baby and then reinflate it later. Other conditions that may prevent you from being eligible for the surgery: if you’re addicted to drugs or alcohol; if you’re under the age of 18; have an infection that could contaminate the surgical area; on chronic long-term steroids; if you can’t or won’t follow the dietary rules and guidelines; if you might be allergic to materials in the device; if you cannot tolerate pain from an implanted device; or if you or someone in your family has had autoimmune connective tissue disease.
I don’t necessarily know what all these things are, but I would imagine if you suffered from one of these conditions, you would already know about it.
This concludes this article. Be sure to look for other titles in the series including Surgery Diet, before and after, risks of surgery, and the real time series following my actual adventures during and after having the surgery- no holds barred- good, bad and ugly, I’m going to share it with you!
Disclaimer – before we start, I want to point out that I’m not a doctor, and I’ve never played one on tv. I am totally unqualified to give you any kind of medical advice. I’m just someone struggling with a weight issue, just like you. I put these together to help you benefit from the research I’ve been doing (and to keep myself accountable).
There are two main types of weight loss surgery- gastric by-pass where they actually cut out part of your stomach, bypass the lower intestine and then hook it all back up together, and the lap band surgery. The lap band is like a ribbon, or balloon that goes around the top of your stomach and is inflated with saline to restrict access to the stomach. Because I’ve decide that I want the lap band, that’s what I’m going to focus on here.
As of Dec 2, 2010, the FDA voted to lower the requirements to qualify for a lap band from a BMI or 40 without any co-morbid factor to a BMI of 35 without and co-morbid factors. For patients with co-morbid factors, the new threshold is 30, whereas it was 35 before.
What are co-morbid factors you ask? Well, they are any health condition that go along with obesity. Some common ones are diabetes, stroke, hypertension, joint problems and sleep apnea.
Beyond the differences in the procedure itself, there are also differences in the rate of weight loss between the band and the bypass. The bypass is better for faster weight loss and a faster reversal of Diabetes, but it may be less effective long term as the new “stomach” could stretch by overeating. The lap-band seems to have a slower rate of weight loss, and better long term results as you can keep the band in, uninflated, and then go in for a fill if you find that you’ve gained some weight back.
So what is the process? Well, it seems that you would start with a consultation with the surgeon, do some lab work, meet with a psychologist and a dietician before getting green lighted for the surgery. I guess they do this so that they can make sure you understand the types of changes you are going to have to make in your eating habits, and also to check that you’re not crazy. Or at least only moderately neurotic and won’t be easily pushed over the edge. I’ve never heard of anyone going postal due to weight loss surgery, but you can never be too careful I guess.
Check with your insurance to see if they’ll cover it. Some insurance will only cover it for the “morbidly obese” (BMI over 40) and not for just “obese” (BMI from 30- 39.9). If you are morbidly obese, make sure you use the “right” terms when asking your insurance if they cover it. Some insurances just won’t cover it at all- in fact, some stupid, short sighted insurances, like mine, specifically exclude weight loss surgery- how dumb is that!? But I digress…. Anyway, if you are one of the lucky ones with good insurance coverage, you may still have to jump through some hoops. You may need to provide medical documentation of 5 yr weight history, actual documentation of diet drugs and/or medically supervised diets, commercial diet program records (weight watchers, medifast, jenny craig, etc- we’ve all done them all haven’t we!?), and excercise program records. How long have YOU been paying for that gym membership you never use? Basically, it seems to me that they want to be able to verify that you have a history of unsuccessful weight loss attempts using other methods and that this is not just a whim for an extra couple of vanity pounds- or something like that…
To prepare for the surgery, you should understand the surgical process and what to expect, understand that you’ll never be able to eat the way you did before (duh- isn’t that the whole point), talk/ network with others who are having or have had the surgery, maybe even start a journal or write a letter to yourself about your reasons and goals for the surgery.
So you’ve gotten all your approvals, done your pre-op diet, and are ready for surgery. What now? They say that you should be able to walk soon after your surgery- that is within hours. The next day you should be able to take care of your own personal needs, but may need help with shopping, lifting and transportation. Once you’re off the pain meds, you can drive again- usually 1-2 weeks post op. Within 6 weeks you should be back to normal activity.
Who can’t get a lap band? If you have the following conditions, you may not be eligible for the surgery; inflammatory disease, ulcers, sever esophagitis or Chrons disease; severe heart or lung disease or any condition that would make surgery risky; problems that could cause bleeding in the espophagas or stomach; portal hypertension; abnormal esophagus, stomach or intestine; an intra-operative gastric injury; cirrhosis; chronic pancreatitus or if you’re pregnant. If you plan to become pregnant after the surgery, that may still be ok, as they will just deflate the band to make sure that you eat enough for the baby and then reinflate it later. Other conditions that may prevent you from being eligible for the surgery: if you’re addicted to drugs or alcohol; if you’re under the age of 18; have an infection that could contaminate the surgical area; on chronic long-term steroids; if you can’t or won’t follow the dietary rules and guidelines; if you might be allergic to materials in the device; if you cannot tolerate pain from an implanted device; or if you or someone in your family has had autoimmune connective tissue disease.
I don’t necessarily know what all these things are, but I would imagine if you suffered from one of these conditions, you would already know about it.
This concludes this article. Be sure to look for other titles in the series including Surgery Diet, before and after, risks of surgery, and the real time series following my actual adventures during and after having the surgery- no holds barred- good, bad and ugly, I’m going to share it with you!
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