What Will Happen During Your Lap Band Surgery

By Kate Jones


After you get to the operating room for the lap band procedure, the nurse is going to have you move to the operating room bed. The anesthesiologist or CRNA will then begin placing sensors on you, and the circulating nurse may be placing SCD's onto your legs or feet. Soon after all monitors are positioned, the anesthesiologist or CRNA will then begin having you breath oxygen through an oxygen mask. Soon after, you'll start to get medication through your IV to make you become unconscious. You will be receiving general anesthesia for this particular procedure, therefore you will need to have a breathing tube placed. As soon as the medication is taking effect and you're unconscious, the anesthesiologist or CRNA will put in the breathing tube. After the breathing tube is secure, you are going to be positioned and prepped for surgery. If you are male, your abdomen might be shaved. You might have a catheter placed in your bladder to empty urine. The circulating nurse will then "prep" your belly utilizing betadine or "CHG" - a germ-killing antimicrobial skin cleaning solution.

After your abdominal area is prepared using the skin cleanser, the surgical team will start to put sterile drapes over you. You're going to be covered completely with all of these sterile drapes other than the location of which they'll be making the cuts. Soon after the drapes are on, and all of the equipment the surgeon will be utilizing is connected and operational, the lap band procedure will commence.

The surgeon will start by making various small cuts in your abdomen. These incisions will be used to put the laparoscope and laparoscopic instruments through. Co2 gas is pumped within in order to inflate your abdomen; this is done so it will be much easier for the surgeon to see. The surgeon uses the laparoscope to see within your abdomen without needing to make a major incision and open your belly. The surgeon will be viewing a monitor which the video coming from the laparoscope will be sent to through the lap band procedure.

A special adjustable round band will be inserted through one of the small incision sites, and carefully placed around the top part of your stomach using the laparoscopic tools. Once the band has been placed in the correct position, it will be fastened in place. An access port which is connected to the band with special tubing is then placed in the abdominal wall. This access port is placed to where it can be later used to adjust the band. By using a special needle and syringe to add or remove saline, the band will become tighter or looser. After the band and port are secured, the incisions are closed with either staples or suture.

As soon as the lap band procedure is over the anesthesiologist or CRNA will begin to wake you up. You may notice them requesting you to open up your mouth or perhaps to squeeze their hand. They execute this to make sure you are awake enough to breath independently before they remove the breathing tube. They should then take the breathing tube out. You are moved onto a stretcher and they will wheel you into the recovery area or PACU (post anesthesia care unit).




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