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Gastric Band

Gastric Band; In 1983, a Polish surgeon Kuzmak, MD described a new method for surgical treatment of obesity and published its results in 1986.

This method, which logically aims at achieving weight loss by creating a partial narrowness at the input of the stomach and providing early satiety, became very popular in the 90s and has been performed for hundreds of thousands of people worldwide.

In recent years, its popularity has rather diminished and it is almost not used. This method, also known as the stomach stapling by the community, is performed laparoscopically as in other surgical procedures, and the criteria for compliance with the procedure are the same as for other methods.

A band, made of silicon, is placed all around 2-3 cm below the junction of the oesophagus and stomach. A small tube connected to the band is connected to a chamber, called ‘port’. This chamber is placed under the skin of the abdomen during the operation.

The band is gradually inflated by giving serum to the chamber under the skin about 1 month after the operation and provides narrowness in the input of the stomach.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of the gastric band procedure?

Except for the fact that gastric band procedure is technically easier and reversible (the stomach is not cut, the band can be removed), it has no other advantage. On the other hand, it is an intervention expected to develop many unpleasant complications.

First, a foreign body is placed in the body and the human body reacts to the foreign body. The displacement of the inserted band and loss of efficacy (migration) and dropping into the stomach by causing erosion on the stomach wall (band erosion) are serious complications of the procedure.

Partial narrowness created at the input of the stomach causes gastroesophageal acid reflux in the majority of patients.

Approximately half of the patients underwent gastric band develop complications that necessitate removal of the band and after the removal of the band, the weight lost is regained since a permanent reduction was not created in the stomach volume.

Another negative aspect is that it makes the future bariatric surgery technically more challenging because of the foreign body reaction it causes.

The expected weight loss after gastric band (stomach stapling) is 35-50% of the excess weight. The next day after the procedure, patient is discharged and the procedure-related mortality rate is 0.05%.