Would You Make A Suitable Candidate For Gastric Lap Band?

By Author: Donald Saunders
Total Articles: 84
Comment this article

There are several different forms of obesity surgery available to patients now including the quite new surgical procedure of gastric lap banding which is rising in popularity and is fast becoming the favored choice for a significant number of severely overweight or morbidly obese people. But are you a suitable candidate for gastric lap band surgery?

In providing an answer to this question we will begin by assuming that you are a suitable candidate for obesity surgery in general and that your only concern therefore is whether or not you should be thinking about lap banding. In very simple terms this means that you are over 18, are morbidly obese with a body mass index (BMI) in excess of 40 (or in excess of 35 with at least one co-morbid condition) and that you have already tried traditional weight loss methods (including possible drug treatment) without any success.

It is generally assumed that people facing weight loss surgery are simply overweight and it is all too easy to forget that individuals who are severely overweight are often suffering from various other conditions, some of which stem from the fact that ...
... they are overweight. It is the presence of these other conditions which often presents an obstacle when it comes to choosing between different forms of surgery.

Because gastric lap banding is a form of restrictive surgery where the stomach is physically restricted in size to limit the amount of food which can pass through the stomach and digestive system, it follows that this form of surgery is probably not going to be suitable if your esophagus, stomach or intestine are in any way abnormal. An abnormality might be inherited or acquired and a typical difficulty seen is a narrowing at one or more points along the digestive tract.

Difficulties within the esophagus or stomach which might result in bleeding (such as esophageal or gastric varices � a dilated vein) would also rule out gastric lap band surgery, as will problems at the location where the band is to be placed around the stomach, such as an injury, scarring or gastric perforation.

Difficulties might also arise if you are suffering from any form of inflammation or inflammatory condition within the gastrointestinal tract like ulcers, esophagitis or Crohn's disease.

Finally, gastric lap band surgery is not considered suitable for pregnant women or for women who are considering pregnancy. If a woman becomes pregnant following gastric lap band surgery the band can be deflated to allow for the raised nutritional requirement however, where loosening the band does not do the trick, the band could need to be removed.

One benefit of gastric band surgery is that the operation can be reversed and, if it becomes necessary, the band can be removed and the stomach returned to its previous state. This can however also be a disadvantage of the system. Motivation is key to any form of obesity surgery but is an especially important issue in the case of gastric lap band surgery. If you have any doubt about how determined you are to succeed then this form of surgery may not be a good option for you.