Lap band surgery, or laparoscopic gastric banding, is a bariatric or weight loss surgery where the surgeon fits a band around the upper part of the patient’s stomach. The band can be inflated, and the upper part of the stomach forms a pouch. Since this pouch is so much smaller than the stomach, it restricts the amount of food that the person can eat at one time and food enters the rest of the stomach slowly. This usually leads to a quick weight loss. But because this is surgery, there are certain risks and not everyone can be approved for lap band surgery. Patients should be screened before they’re deemed eligible for this surgery.
Age
Though the surgery is usually recommended for people over 18, teenagers 14 and over can also have the lap band surgery if they are morbidly obese and can’t lose weight through exercise or healthy eating.
Ethnicity
Ethnicity isn’t a factor when choosing lap band surgery.
Health Considerations
Some people are simply too sick with other conditions, both physical and psychological, to be able to stand the stress of surgery. The patient is monitored before the surgery and if it’s shown that they’ve gained weight or have taken up bad habits like smoking, the surgery won’t be performed. The surgery is also not recommended for people with diseases like hypothyroidism, where the thyroid gland is working suboptimally, or inflammatory diseases of the GI tract like Crohn’s disease or ulcers. People who are addicted to drugs or alcohol are also not candidates for the surgery. Patients who can’t tolerate implants, whether because they’re allergic to them or can’t tolerate the pain, also shouldn’t have this surgery.
Weight
The surgery is performed on people who have a body mass index of about 40 or more. For men, this means they're about 100 pounds overweight. For women, it means that they’re about 80 pounds overweight. The lap band surgery is also performed on people whose body mass index is 35 or more and they present with serious health problems, like high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.