skinut2234 Posted September 24, 2007 Posted September 24, 2007 My wife is interested in the lap band system...... Everything else she has tried has not worked- Any thoughts on this?
quankanne Posted September 24, 2007 Posted September 24, 2007 I've heard some information about it on one of those 30-second "this what your physicians as Hospital X offers you" and it sounds like it's a relatively harmless procedure. Meaning, the surgery isn't extensive, it only involves a few cuts instead of one big one, so there is a quicker healing period; that it's reversible; that it can be adjusted to suit a patient's need (health issues like diabetes or pregnancy), etc. Do a websearch on it, then check with your local hospitals for more detailed information. Oh! And I believe because of the fewer health risks associated with it, it may be the preferred method by insurance companies (especially if they don't have to fork out money for a hospital stay), which more and more are approving of surgical procedures to reverse morbid obesity. You might want to also check your health ins. handbook to see precisely what it suggests. and, have your wife ask her general practioner for information and recommendation if she's serious about persuing this. ChampVA (my insurance provider) has listed under "Morbid Obesity" the kinds of procedures they cover, and conditions must be met for them to consider the surgery (BMI over 40 or, over 35 with serious medical conditions exacerbated by the obesity, like diabetes, sleep apnea, heart problems, etc). So if she meets the criteria they put forth, and if her doctor feels it's a good way to "conquor" the issue, they should be open to paying for it. What I'd recommend is have all the physicians she's seeing for problems related to the obesity provide letters of support, saying it's their medical opinion that this is a needed procedure. This is what I plan to do, hit up my pulmonologist (I have sleep apnea), possibly even my gynecologist (who has been on my case to seek medical assistance to control my weight problem) as well as my GP, who handles my diabetes. I can also ask around (if you like) to see what an insurance insider suggests ...
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