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Category: LapBand Removal

Survey

December 16, 2023 9:54 am

Hello Weight loss surgical results are dependent on several variables. These include patient-specific conditions as well as the type of surgery. The primary objective of this study is to evaluate if there is any value in the specific pre-operative workup mandated by health insurance plans and the long-term outcome of the weight loss surgical procedures. The secondary result of the study is to compare the surgical outcomes of the different weight loss procedures. We hope you can spare a few minutes to complete the survey if you have received it. If you have not seen the study, please check your spam junk folder for an email that contains the link from our office. We wish you a happy and healthy holiday season.   Date-entry instruction Video 

Revision from failed AGB to Duodenal Switch

January 10, 2018 2:10 pm

A few times a month during consultation for weight loss surgery , I’m ask as to why I do not offer the adjustable gastric banding as an alternative to the patients. As I have said over the years when a patient considers an weight loss surgery the totality of the risk should be considered. This includes the operative, immediate postoperative course, the maintenance and the follow-ups needed. The potential complications of the procedure in addition to the long-term success off each operation should also be taken into account.

Unfortunately, some patients are led to believe that any perceived benefit in the short operative time and the ease of the adjustable gastric banding also translates to a better outcome. This is in fact the opposite of what the published data have shown, a recent study published in April 2017 by Vinzes et.al, shows that 71% of patient lost their band by 10 years out.

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What is also interesting that more patients underwent revision from failed AGB to the duodenal switch than the sleeve gastrectomy (Fig 1.). This is what I also recommend.

More importantly, The patients who underwent a revision from failed AGB to the duodenal switch operation had the best long term results of all patients (Fig 2.) note the “rBPD” line that is the highest of %EBMIL.

Complication’s were broad and frequent (Table 3.)

Further information on revision from failed AGB to Duodenal Switch or other failed weight loss surgeries can be found here.

Success Story: Hasmik

January 13, 2016 2:47 pm

Failed Band: My earliest memory of feeling ashamed of being “too heavy” is from kindergarten. For over 30+ years I have struggled with  gaining weight, trying to lose weight, or going mad maintaining my weight. There is no shortcut that does not come back to bite you in the butt. There is no diet that effectively changes you permanently. For me exercise is a mindful struggle I sometimes successfully commit to over small periods of time.

I was desperate and ready for a real change. I wanted a genuine difference in the way I consumed and related to food and decided the lap band was the way to go. It was marketed as a “non intrusive, non permanent, easily reversible weight loss tool” and that is EXACTLY what I thought I needed and wanted. I was so very wrong, after my surgery I was considered a “success”. In fact up until the removal of my second slipped failed band, esophagus damage, and poor nutrition; I was considered a success. I look back and think how troubling this was/is. How very damaging to the person struggling and dealing with weight issues. Truly, it messed with my mind and my ability to speak up, admit to myself and out loud the band was NOT working for me. In fact, if I’m completely truthful, it was dangerous and turned me into a residue of the person I once was. I was not able to eat comfortably or  eat out any place I happen to be. With the Band, I would need to consider how long I was going to be away from home because I could only eat small bites in small quantities to ensure I did not get stuck or worse vomit what I put inside my mouth. Yes, I had lost almost 100 lbs, but I had given my quality of life as payment. My guilt ensured I would never speak up or complain since I felt “fortunate” and grateful to have had this second chance at life. In my mind, speaking up meant possibly losing the tool (lap band) that allowed me to change my life and reality. Because for the first time in memory, I was the same weight at the start, middle, and end of the year. I did not have to buy different sizes of clothing or underclothing. I could predict what I might wear since my size was stable and my clothes fit. The reality is and was far from this corrupted self truth. I was unhealthy with the restrictive nature of how the lap band worked. In fact my band slipped twice after a severe stomach virus. I later learned of many other symptoms I was making excuses for and quite frankly straight out ignored.

I met Dr. Keshishian (Dr. K) at my lowest weight and at the lowest point in my health. I finally realized, the lap band needed to come out after it had slipped again. It was clear I needed a doctor who would be straight with me and cared for my health and not his/her “success” rates and have the expertise to deal with my failed band. I researched and called several bariatric surgeons then attempted to make appointments with each to discuss the urgent band removal surgery I needed (not as simple as you would think). I was also hopeful I might have the option to undergo the bariatric sleeve surgery because I knew I would not be able to keep my weight under control on my own.  I was unwilling to undergo the emotional and mental torment of gaining and losing weight for the rest of my days. I succeeded in making three appointments and truthfully after meeting and speaking to Dr. K and his office staff I canceled them immediately. Let me start with the staff as that REALLY is important; they help you feel comfortable with the doctor, the procedure, and overall experience. They represent and reflect how the doctor you’re about to see will treat his patients. The expected standard within Dr. Keshishian’s office immediately made me feel like I called the right place. I was taken by the knowledgable, kind tone and efficient manner in which they requested the necessary information to effectively help me get from the starting point to the end goal. When I got to my appointment, Dr. Keshishian BLEW MY MIND. He not only presented himself as an approachable person I  immediately felt at ease with but also reveal my concerns and questions.  He treated me like a person. This may sound strange but this doctor made me feel like a human being with real concerns. He listened to me, asked questions rather than talked at me, and explained how and what was happening to my body and mind. He spent 3 hours with me to answer all my questions (even if I repeated them), draw diagrams, show me video to better help me understand what was happening, and then just sat with me while I cried for a moment. I cried because my 30+ years journey of ups and downs, crazy and insanity finally led me to the door of a man who understood and knew how to help without judgment. WHICH DOCTOR DOES THIS! None that I know.

My life post surgery is what I always hoped it would be. I am able to eat vegetables, leafy greens, fruit, grains and basically a well rounded diet. What’s amazing is that I naturally do not crave sweets, heavy creamy dressings, sauces and fill up quickly. There is after all a difference between the restriction of a lap band and the feeling of being full with the sleeve which Dr. K patiently explained. Today I am able to go any where,  at any time, enjoy the moment and the company rather than worry about what I’m not able to consume. My days of scanning to locate the nearest bathroom in case I need to dash to it are over.

As I write this today, I feel like a real person, not some transient hoping to savor my life at glimpses. I am a person that is balanced in my heart with the average person’s anxiety and mindful eating habits. The sleeve is not a magic end to weight gain, it does give you the fighting chance to make choices in life leading up to results you’re willing to work for.

~ Grateful and Mindful, Hasmik (September 2015 Sleeve Op Patient)

Stricture with Lap Band

May 31, 2015 6:44 am

One of the most common findings with patients seeking revision of the Lap band is the persistent and continuos nausea, vomiting and reflux, even though the band is emptied. The typical presentation is that of a patient who had an adjustable gastric band placed and adjusted. When the weight loss stops any attempt to adjust and tighten the band results in reflux, nausea and vomiting. Unfortunately, there is lack of recognition that even when the band is completely empty, and even if removed, then a patient can still have the symptoms present, if the scar capsule that forms between the band and the tissue is not removed.

It is critical that when a Lap band is removed that time is spent excising the capsule that is present to allow for the tissue beneath the band to return to its normal caliber.

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Note in these images how with the Lap band completely open the tissue underneath is “restricted” by the capsule that has formed under the band. In this case the capsule was also excised and removed along with the band.

Adjustable Gastric Band Removal & Hiatal Hernia Repair

April 21, 2015 6:30 pm

As it is a recurrent theme, a patient presents with a band that was placed years ago with marginal weight loss over a short period of time. Multiple office visits to the same center for band adjustments, which only results in worsening nausea, vomiting and reflux to the point of having difficulty with taking fluids in. The irony was that the patient was being blamed for the symptoms as to “…eating the wrong food, …eating too much, etc” The patient presented to the Emergency Room and was taken to the Operating Room within few hours for a partially slipped band and a Hiatal Hernia was also identified. The adjustable gastric band was removed and the Hiatal hernia was repaired.

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The band in place and after being taken down

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The dissection of the wrap over the band that shows erosion

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Part of the hiatal hernia repair.

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The band and the port removed.