Table of Contents - Sample Excerpts
Chapter 16: Frequently Asked Questions about the Band

Q. How much weight could I expect to lose?
A. Studies around the world have determined that up to 70% of the excess weight is lost with the LAP-BAND. Our center has results similar to most centers around the world. A few centers in the United States have corroborated this fact.
A multi-country European study was conducted with 3,800 LAP-BAND patients. The mean percentage of excess weight loss at the three-year level was 73%. These results may vary due to the level of proper diet and exercise following surgery.

Q. How long has LAP-BAND surgery been performed?
A. The LAP-BAND was first placed in Huy, Belgium in September of 1993 by Dr. Mitiku Belachew. Soon after, it was introduced in 1993 in Australia, Europe, and Mexico. In the United States in June of 2001, the Food and Drug Administration approved the BioEnterics Band produced by Inamed Corporation for use in the United States. Surgeons in the US have been proctored (trained to do the surgery) by surgeons from Europe, Australia and Mexico, where the surgery has been done for more than a decade at the time of this writing.

Q. Do I qualify as a candidate for surgery?
A. To be considered for surgery in the Unites States, you must meet the following FDA guidelines:
• Are 100 pounds or more over ideal body weight or have a BMI of forty or greater.
• And/or have a BMI greater than thirty-five with associated health problems related to obesity. These include hypertension, heart disease, high cholesterol level, diabetes respiratory problems, gastro-esophageal reflux, stress urinary incontinence, degenerative arthritis, and venous stasis disease/ulcers.
• Have tried medically supervised dieting to lose weight and have been unsuccessful at keeping it off.
• Be motivated to commit yourself to a change in your life.
• Not be suffering from other diseases that could have caused obesity, such as thyroid.
• Be between the ages of eighteen and sixty.