Causes of dissatisfaction in some patients after adjustable gastric banding

Background: The laparoscopic application of the adjustable gastric band has gained widespread acceptance as a gastric restrictive procedure. The weigh t loss been well documented. This paper evaluates the patients' satisfactio n. Methods: Between April 1995 and July 1999, 82 consecutive patients underwen t the Lap-Band (R) procedure. Results: Follow-up is 100%. The satisfaction index is high. 80% of all pati ents are extremely pleased or pleased. 15% of patients are displeased or ex tremely displeased. 5% have no opinion. The reason for low satisfaction dif fer, but 3 groups can be distinguished: 1) patients who suffered surgical c omplications; 2) patients who did not benefit from the procedure; 3) most i mportantly, patients who suffered psychological complications. Conclusion: Gastric Banding is a safe, standardized and effective operation , with good acceptance by the patients. More efforts have to be made to imp rove patient selection and to avoid surgical complications. Most importantl y, more focus is needed on the psychological aspect of the procedure and it s consequences.