Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding: an attractive option

Abstract

Bariatric surgery is the only effective treatment producing sustained weight loss and reduction in comorbidities in the morbidly obese. Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) has evolved considerably in techniques of insertion and band management since the initial descriptions in the early 1990s. Major advantages of LAGB include lower perioperative morbidity and mortality, adjust-ability, and reversibility. Although weight loss occurs more slowly than after gastric bypass, end results are comparable.