Gastric Band

This is the commonest of the obesity surgery operations in the UK. The first laparoscopic band was placed in 1993 and hundred of thousands of them have been used world-wide. The gastric band insertion operation takes less than an hour to perform and clients usually just spend one night in hospital and return to work within two weeks.

The operation involves placing a silicone band around the top part of the stomach. Along the inner part of the band is an inflatable ring which is connected to a filling port (placed under your skin) by a length of thin tubing. To tighten or loosen the band, fluid is injected or removed through the port – a procedure that takes just a couple of minutes in the clinic.

The band works by creating a small pouch at the top of the stomach and thereby reducing the amount of food that can enter the stomach. Patients with a band feel full after eating a small amount of solid food. The rate at which the food passes through the band into the rest of the stomach is determined by the tightness of the band.

By restricting your food intake, the band helps to reduce your calorie intake and you will therefore lose weight. However it is not a quick fix solution and the key to working successfully with the band is re-educating your eating habits. You need to learn to avoid soft or liquid calories and to eat healthy meals, slowly and chew very well. If you eat too much or too quickly, you will regurgitate food. After placement of a band a meal portion is approximately half to one cupful of food.

The surgical procedure to insert a band is relatively low risk, but the risks with this treatment come in the longer term – and the medical literature reports that up to 1 in 10 people with a band will develop a complication that requires them needing further surgery. Band complications can include infection, slippage, erosion or leaks. However, most problems can be corrected and in our experience it is rare for a band to need to be removed. Even if you lose all of your excess weight, the intention is to leave the band in place for life as taking it out would probably result in weight regain.