Many people suffering from obesity opt for surgery to help them lose weight and improve their overall health. Two common procedures include sleeve gastrectomy (gastric sleeve) and the laparoscopic gastric band (lap band). Both of these surgeries work by making modifications to the patient’s stomach. The stomach is then unable to hold the same amount of food it could before. However, each surgery achieves this in a different way. If you’re interested in gastric sleeve or lap band surgery in El Paso, you need to fully understand the difference between the two. Let’s go over some details.
Lap Band Surgery
During lap band surgery, a device or band is placed around the stomach. This band cinches off a small area in the upper stomach. Now cinched, this small section can only hold a fraction of the food the entire stomach is capable of holding. Then, saline is injected into the small section, which restricts the amount of food you can eat before feeling full. Digestion occurs as it always has. After your lap band surgery in El Paso, your doctor will monitor your progress and can adjust the band as needed.
Gastric Sleeve Surgery
As part of gastric sleeve surgery, your doctor removes a portion of your stomach. This is done in a way so the remaining stomach is in the shape of a sleeve. Because your stomach is now much smaller, you’re only capable of eating a certain amount of food before you start to feel full. This cuts down on your caloric intake and makes weight loss much easier. Because this surgery is much more invasive and involves the removal of part of your stomach, there’s a much longer recovery time. You need to consider this when deciding between gastric sleeve and lap band surgery in El Paso.
If you’re considering lap band surgery in El Paso, visit the Memorial Weight Loss Center website to learn what options are available to you.
