A Lap Band is a device that is used in gastric bypass surgery except with this device the stomach is not cut. The Lap Band gastric bypass creates a small pouch in the upper portion of the stomach by installing a band that wraps around it that has a stoma which can be controlled. This is done all without having to staple the stomach and it does the same thing which is limits the amount of food taken in.
The Lap band is installed by small incisions in the skin outside the stomach and again, wraps around the upper part of the stomach forming a new smaller stomach or a small pouch that acts as the new stomach. The whole lap band gastric bypass takes about 1 hour or less and is designed so that the band can be inflated or deflated at any time after operation.
There are a few distinct advantages of having a Lap band gastric bypass versus one where the stomach is actually stapled. For one the hospital stay is shorter, most times the patient leaves within 2 days. It is completely reversible unlike when the stomach is actually stapled. The band can be adjusted after surgery to fit the needs of the patient and help them achieve their differing weight loss goals. There is no cutting or stapling of the stomach.
Hopefully this short article was helpful in aiding your understanding of the uses of the lap band in gastric bypass procedures.
Generally you will need a referral from a primary care physicican (PCP) to get a gastric bypass surgery done. The PCP will evaluate you and if they think you are a good candidate for the gastric bypass they will refer you for a consult with a gastric bypass surgeon who will get the ball rolling in further deciding on whether or not you are a good candidate, etc…
To make your PCP referral for gastric bypass surgery go smoother there are some things you can do to make help them determine whether or not to refer you. One thing is to make sure you have a good idea of your medical history and an overall history of your weight. Approximately how long you have been overweight, current health problems and what you have been doing to try lose weight.
Also, it would be a good idea to research gastric bypass and other types of weight loss surgery online to have a good idea of what the procedure entails so that the PCP knows that you do understand the risks involved with a gastric bypass.
Please feel free to post any other referral tips below.
The gastric bypass diet has four distinct stages to it. This is the diet you will be started on after you have had a gastric bypass procedure. At first it will not be easy to ingest anything so naturally it will start off very mild and slightly increase as you begin to recover from the gastric bypass.
Stage 1 is where you only ingest clear liquids. And as it sounds you will only drink clear fluids like water, apple juice, teas, and things like broth. This will begin immediately after your gastric bypass and will last for about 1-2 days.
Stage 2 is where you will transition to full liquids like those meal replacement drinks. Things like slim fast or carnation instant breakfast type stuff. You’ll also be started on multi-vitamins and this will last for about 2 weeks like this.
Stage 3 is where you begin on soft foods like puddings and purees. The whole point of this stage of the gastric bypass diet is to ingest soft foods that are high in protein. You can have things like scrambled eggs, cottage cheese, tuna fish, oatmeal, etc… The food needs to be soft so as to be easy on your new smaller sensitive stomach.
Next is stage 4 where you will begin on your so called regular diet. This is the final stage in the gastric bypass diet and normall you’ll get to this point about 8 weeks out from your gastric bypass. You’ll be watching what you eat and you’ll be taking vitamin supplements for the rest of your life.
Life after a gastric bypass is not all that easy as some might expect. Having the surgery alone does not take the weight off, the gastric bypass makes the stomach smaller so that less food will be consumed and that in turn makes the weight come off. So life after gastric bypass is going to be a lot different than it was before you had the surgery. There is a whole new set of rules that you will need to play by.
On a day to day basis you will have to of course be very mindful of what you eat. After a little while your appetite will come back to you. Granted it will not be like it was before but you will begin to get hungry again and you will want to consume like you used to because your mind is not changed, just your stomach… so you have to let your mind adjust to the smaller quantities of food that you consume now too. It will take a lot of self control.
Some of the things that you will be able to eat are chicken, soups, fish, soft foods like yogurt, and some vegetables and fruits. In addition you can also eat some sweets like ice cream, but you should not drink sweets like soda or anything else with a lot of sugar in it. Your doctor will give you a very strict menu of items that you can and cannot eat and it will need to be followed very closely.
In addition to your new eating habits after gastric bypass you will need to begin some sort of fitness training to enhance your cardiovascular profile and improve your bodies overall fitness and health.
A mini gastric bypass is a shorter and more simplistic type of laparoscopic gastric bypass procedure designed for weight loss. Overall the entire procedure only takes about a half hour and the patient is only in the hospital for about 1 day so it is much less invasive then a full gastric bypass surgery. Along with the other benefits the mini gastric bypass has less risk associated with the procedure than a full gastric bypass operation involves.
The mini gastric bypass has proven to be able to produce long term weight loss with a much less amount of pain associated with the procedure as opposed to a full gastric bypass. The mini gastric bypass (MGB) also has the added benefit of being able to reverse the procedure unlike a normal gastric bypass which cannot be reversed once completed.
A mini gastric bypass procedure uses a scope and instruments that are inserted through small incisions instead of through a large abdominal incision as in the case of a regular gastric bypass operation. The mini gastric bypass procedure produces a stomach that is the size of a magic marker. This major reduction in the physical size of the stomach is the reason why such phenomenal weight loss is achieved.
Gastric bypass surgery is sometimes paid for by insurance companies and other times the patient pays for the whole thing from their own pocket. Of course it does depend on your insurance company but the big differentiator is whether or not it is considered medically necessary. If it is medically necessary, as declared by a qualified doctor, then it is more likely that your insurance company will pay for all or a part of the gastric bypass.
In most insurance policies there is a clear list of what is an allowable operation and what is not covered, so if you do some research on what type of plan you have you should easily be able to find out. But again, either way you should call the insurance company and speak to one of their representatives because there are always exceptions. If it’s medically necessary and they don’t cover it, there might be an exception that you could take advantage of but you would only know about it if you call and ask.
Hopefully this helps…
A mini gastric bypass is a short and simple mildly invasive laparoscopic gastric bypass procedure designed for weight loss. Total time for the procedure is normally about thirty minutes depending on the facility. Hospitalization after surgery is less than 1 day so it is an easier less intrusive way to lose weight than a full out gastric bypass operation.
Proven to be a successful procedure for long term weight loss it is associated with a relatively low amount of pain and the risk involved in minimal. In addition if desired the mini gastric bypass can be reversed which is not true for a normal gastric bypass procedure.
In fact a doctor in North Carolina has a perfected and studied mini gastric bypass procedures and compared them head to head with normal gastric bypass procedures and found the mini gastric bypass to have shorter operating times, fewer complications and side effects as well as comparable amounts of weight loss!
That being said, “which one would you rather have done?” It seems that these mini gastric bypass surgery’s are going to eventually replace the old way of doing the gastric bypass. In addition to all of the other benefits listed the mini gastric bypass (MGB) is also cheaper than a normal gastric bypass.
A gastric bypass normally costs about $24,000 and a mini gastric bypass will cost about $17,000.
After the gastric bypass procedure you will be on a liquid diet for at least three weeks (maybe more). Once you begin to transition from the liquid to food you will need to start out with softer foods like soup, etc… until you begin to get used to real food again. After you’ve been on the softer foods for awhile you can gradually transition to real food again.
The key is to remember that your stomach just underwent a major change and is going to be extremely sensitive due to the shock it’s under. It will take you about 3 months to get back to a normal diet but even then it will be ‘different’ than what you were probably eating before the gastric bypass because you will need ensure that you don’t undo the weight that the procedure took off.
When you first begin your liquid diet at home you’ll need to drink fluid every hour in the very beginning to avoid dehydration and ensure that you’re getting enough protein since you aren’t going to be eating any real food.
In addition to this liquid diet you will need to take multivitamin supplement everyday and you will need to maintain this for the rest of your life after the gastric bypass due to the fact that you’ll be eating less food (less room in your stomach), eating different food (change of diet), and your body’s absorption rate will have decreased due the gastric bypass procedure. This makes it especially important to get all the vitamins and minerals through supplements so your body functions normally.
After a gastric bypass your stomach will physically be able to hold less food not to mention the sensitivity changes that your body will go through so to say that your diet will change is an understatement.
It’s very important that you get vitamins and minerals in your diet after a gastric bypass as you will be prone to vitamin deficiencies due to the surgery. In fact, it is recommended by most doctors (please check with yours before taking anything) that you take a multivitamin and possibly an extra vitamin B12, iron, and calcium supplement due the lack thereof in the diet that you will be forced to be on after the gastric bypass.
The actual gastric bypass procedure will bring about a significant weight loss but the diet will maintain that weight loss so it’s very important to follow it and take it seriously to maintain your weight loss over time. The gastric bypass diet includes foods that are rich in protein and low in sugar, calories, fiber and fat.
It will take you awhile to get used to the new changes in the size of your stomach and during this transition period you might experience some complications that have been described as nausea, vomiting, dumping, uncomfortable fullness, dehydration and even ulcers.
The dehydration is something to be careful of and drinking plenty of fluids especially water is recommended throughout the day.
Later I’ll post some specifics on exactly what the gastric bypass diet consists of.
That’s it for now…
Gastric bypass procedures are considered pretty safe overall but there is always the risks of complications from having the procedure done. I ll review some of the complications here but please consult with your doctor for specific risk assessment.
First and foremost… death. There is always a possibility of death with any major surgery and it is a very real possibility with a gastric bypass as well. It is not a common occurrence by any stretch of the imagination but you need to know that it is possible. The rest of the gastric bypass complications we’ll break into 2 different categories for discussion, short term complications and long term complications.
Gastric bypass short term complications:
1. Excess bleeding.
2. Infection, abscess, and leakage.
3. Severe nausea and vomiting.
4. Pulmonary embolus.
5. Gallstones.
6. Diarrhea.
7. Arthritis.
Gastric bypass long term complications:
1. Vitamin deficiencies.
2. Nerve pain throughout the body commonly called peripheral neuropathy.
3. GI bleeding.
But for the most part most patients return to a normal status with no major lingering conditions. Consult your doctor for your specific risks and possible complications.
