What is a Lap Band?



A lap band is a strip of material that can be placed around your stomach, contracting it and in the process giving you less of an appetite whenever you sit down to the table to eat. The lap band itself is something that is distributed under various name brands, but regardless of the name brand of the particular lap band that you order, all of them have this particular characteristic in common.

How is the Lap Band Installed?

The lap band is installed through a surgical procedure. When you go in and consult with your doctor, they will tell you more about what the specifics of the actual surgery are. However, in basic terms, the doctor is going to make an incision into your abdomen and then insert the lap band, placing it in a ring around your stomach. This is the essential part of the surgery and once that step has been completed, finishing up is a very minor process. You will be under general anesthesia for most of the surgery, but the lap band will be in place and good to go by the time you get up.

Are Multiple Surgeries Required?

In most cases, no. The surgical process that is being used to install the lap band tool is quite a bit different from most of the other surgery you will likely hear about. Surgery in most cases is an invasive procedure in which the various organs are opened up and because of this it can be very stressful for the person being operated on. Lap band surgery, while invasive in the technical sense, does not touch any of the internal parts of your organs and only makes a small incision through which the band is installed. Since none of your bodily organs or systems are operated on, the stress is reduced and most people can be in and out of the hospital in a few hours.

How is the Lap Band maintained?

The great part about the lap band is that you can actually do all of the maintenance work by yourself. Once the doctor installs the lap band, you can actually adjust the lap band yourself through a control device that comes with it. This means that all you have to do is wear the lap band at a particular tension until your doctor tells you otherwise and then once a set of criteria have been reached, you can adjust the lap band at home to a looser tension and go to the next stage of your diet.

Are visits to the doctor required?

That depends on how you want your treatment to progress. If you actually want to avoid your doctor as much as possible, the lap band surgery can take that into account. You can get an instructional tape on adjustments and do everything at home, in which case the only visits you will make to your doctor will be before surgery. If you want lots of doctor input however, you can get that also. Lap band surgery gives you a lot of choice in this area.