Gastric Sleeve vs. Lap band Surgery

– Bariatric Surgeon, Las Vegas

In this video, a leading bariatric and general surgeon states the difference between lap band and gastric sleeve surgery in Las Vegas.

The surgeon explains pros and cons of both the procedures along with details of how they are done.

Check out the video where the surgeon talks about selection of right surgery for the patient depending on the choice and comfort of the patient.

Video Narration

“I am Bariatric and general surgeon.  I completed fellowship at USC in advanced laparoscopic surgery.  We address a lot of complicated general surgeries such as complicated hernias and also complicated gall bladder disease.  Although most of my practice is in bariatric but I still do these procedures.

Well gastric sleeve is a newer weight loss operation. It’s around for about eight years now.  Although it’s a part of other operations that we do since 1988, has been there for a while and in gastric sleeve what we are doing is that we are shrinking the stomach down to a sleeve or a long narrow tube and we do that by freeing up majority of the stomach and taking a stapler and going up and cutting by 85 percent of the stomach.  We use something called a booze or scissor to make the two appropriate sizes. We don’t want too narrow, we don’t want too big, we want just right.  And we use that booze as a scissor, we come along inside that and staple up on the stomach and tapper it down to a long narrow sleeve that empties down at bottom and it’s a nice operation.  I really like the gastric sleeve because it seems to give us all the benefits of the band because now u have lots of restriction like lap band would do or a realize band. You have lots of restriction but it also gives us benefits of the bypass.  Hormonal changes that we see in the bypass that are so powerful, we see in the sleeve.  So for example hunger, when you are hungry, when you diet and you eventually fail. That hunger hormones are called ghrelin and that’s produced in the stomach and that’s taken out with the sleeve.  So with the sleeve it’s the tapering of the stomach making it smaller and narrower and was getting two things out of it. Getting good restrictions and getting hormonal changes as well.

Choosing a surgery is very difficult.  We don’t have a professional guide book, I wish I did, I wish I could look it up and say well you drive a Honda and your vote democratic so you get a band.  We don’t have it.  We have to go with the patient comfort and what they are comfortable with.  So what I try to do with patient is  simply tell them about the operations, tell them the pros and cons because they all have them, for the band and the sleeve and see what clicks somebody, what’s comfortable.  The band is a nice operation, the reasons I choose band are that it’s the safest surgery I can do for my patients and there is the surgeon which is always my first priority.  It’s the safest surgery I can do, its reversible and it’s adjustable and these are all options that are very strong and safe for my patients and allow me a good night’s rest as well.

The sleeve is little more aggressive of the surgery but the benefits are definitely there and the sleeve we are cutting things away for the first time but we are getting not only restrictions but some hormonal changes as well. So the weight loss is a little bit stronger with the sleeve.  The weight loss may be as good as the bypass of the sleeve.  So it’s hard to choose between, again it’s on the patient, what’s comfortable, what clicks.  Some people for example want to have the safest surgery, which is understandable; it’s going to be band.  Now the person feels like that they have to have the strongest surgery available but still want to be safe, that’s going to be a sleeve.  Now the person might not want the foreign body inside them, the lap band is the foreign body.  It’s meant to stay there for the life of the patient, so that again is the sleeve.  There are various reasons for choosing.  It’s important that the patients are comfortable, it’s important that they know that the reasons they have are the good reasons.  There are no bad reasons to choose these operations, after you talk to your surgeon.”

The surgeon considers comfort of the patient as most important factor in selection of the right surgery for him.  Gastric sleeve involves cutting down a part of the stomach and taking it out along with the hunger hormone whereas in lap band, a foreign body (swizz band) is installed in the upper portion of the stomach.  The band is adjustable and it is the safest surgery of all. So the choice of selecting the safest or the most effective surgery lies with the patient.

In addition to Las Vegas, low cost lap band surgery in Mexico is also a popular option for patients looking for weight loss procedure at affordable price.

Medical Tourism Corporation facilitates low cost gastric sleeve or lab band surgery abroad at many international locations. Fill out the estimate request form for a free quote & more information.