Facebook Pixel

LAP-BAND® Surgery Procedure: How Long Does It Take? - Dr. Bhoyrul (VIDEO)

By Expert
 
Rate This

Dr. Bhoyrul explains how long LAP-BAND® bariatric surgery takes and discusses what women will eat after the procedure. He also shares how often a woman will need adjustments to her LAP-BAND® device.

Dr. Bhoyrul:
A good way, even though every surgeon is different, good way of remembering the data behind your experience, behind the LAP-BAND®, is what I call the rule of ones.

One hour in surgery, one day in hospital, one week off work, and one month to get back to your completely normal level of physical activity like say going to the gym and doing some weights.

So if you remember the ones, an hour, a day, a week and a month, you will remember all of the milestones that are associated with having the surgery.

Remember the final one is one percent. There’s a one percent chance that things may not go according to plan and you wouldn’t meet those milestones.

People who have had a LAP-BAND® will for a couple of weeks after surgery be on a liquid diet. Initially that diet is clear liquid, so in other words if you can’t see through it you can’t drink it, soups and broths.

And then after a few days of the clear liquid you will be on any form of liquid – protein shakes and so on and so forth, and you will be on that for a couple of weeks.

In a couple of weeks you will go back and you will meet with your doctor. He will check his handy work. He or she will make sure that everything is okay and that you are recovering well from surgery.

And then after that we will advance you to a soft, mushy diet for another week or so and then beyond that you will be on regular foods. A soft mushy diet? It’s real simple. If you can crush it with the back end of your fork you can put it in your mouth.

My patients who have had a LAP-BAND® surgery will come and see me once a month every month for about three months, because it takes me about three months to get the right amount of fluid into their band and get the right amount of restriction.

After that many patients still like to come in once a month every month, almost a year because it really fosters a very high level of accountability between my patient and me, that good, that solid doctor-patient relationship.

But you don’t actually need to come in once you have reached the optimal adjustment, and as I say, it takes about three months to get the optimal adjustment.

About Dr. Sunil Bhoyrul, M.D.:
Dr. Sunil Bhoyrul, M.D., is the award-winning surgeon in charge of the bariatric surgery program at La Jolla Weight Management. He is a fellowship-trained specialist in laparoscopic surgery and an attending surgeon at Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, California and Alvarado Hospital in San Diego. Previously, Dr. Bhoyrul was the head of general surgery and surgical director of bariatric surgery at the Scripps Clinic. Each year since 2005, Dr. Bhoyrul has been selected by his peers as one of the “Best Doctors in America.” He was also honored with San Diego’s “Top Doctor” award for 2008.

Visit Dr. Bhoyrul at Alvarado Hospital

Bariatric Surgery

Get Email Updates

Bariatric Surgery Guide

Have a question? We're here to help. Ask the Community.

ASK

Health Newsletter

Receive the latest and greatest in women's health and wellness from EmpowHER - for free!