The LAP-BAND® System

The LAP-BAND^® System is a bariatric surgery procedure designed to help very overweight people lose excess body weight, improve weight-related health conditions, and enhance their quality of life.

The LAP-BAND System involves implantation of a fully adjustable medical device (known as a gastric band) around the upper portion of the stomach during a minimally invasive surgical procedure. Once the band is in place, it can be tightened to allow the patient to only eat a small amount of food. 

Unlike other bariatric surgery procedures, the LAP-BAND System procedure does not require stomach cutting or stapling or re-routing of the gastrointestinal tract to bypass normal digestion. The LAP-BAND System is the only adjustable and reversible weight-loss surgery available in the United States and the only weight-loss surgery approved for use by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The name "LAP-BAND" refers both to the surgical technique used, laparoscopic, and the name of the implanted medical device, the gastric band. The LAP-BAND^® System consists of a silicone ring containing an inflatable cuff which is placed around the upper part of the stomach, a fill port which is placed directly beneath the surface of the abdominal skin, tubing connecting the band to the fill port, and the surgical tools to perform the procedure.

Once the LAP-BAND is in place around the upper portion of the stomach, the surgeon injects sterile saline (salt water) into the fill port until the band reaches the desired tightness.

The goal is to create a new, smaller stomach pouch that can hold only a tiny amount of food, reducing the stomach's food storage area. The band also controls the stoma (stomach outlet) between the newly created, smaller upper stomach pouch and the lower part of the stomach. The smaller the stomach, the quicker people feel full, and the slower food moves between the upper and lower portions of the stomach during digestion. As a result, people feel less hunger, eat less, and lose weight.