Great question! I used to direct a TV series in the 90’s called AMERICAN HEALTH NETWORK. One year, I did a segment on this surgery and the doctor explained that 40% of the patients will never change their eating habits and, over time and much stress to their surgical modification, go right back to where they were. I would think that in this more modern day, they’d be better at screening out weak minded patient candidates.
I believe he had another gastric band procedure last February.
True they don’t always work but pictures in the media also have a history of being altered to make him appear heavier so I don’t know. Has he looked any better in person or at the debates ??
“...they’d be better at screening out weak minded patient candidates.”
They, collectively, would probably go out of business. The mind is a terrible thing to waste.
Lap bands have fallen way out of favor. Currently the surgical option is something called a sleeve gastrectomy. It removes the greater curvature (a portion there of) which is where the hormones that trigger hunger are and leaves the portion of the stomach where the hormone grelin which signals to the brain satiety. With the volume reduction and activity of unopposed grelin working in combination weight is lost.
Bands only provide mechanical restriction and as such eating slow or often enough you can “eat through” a band.
Modern bariatric surgery has substantial risk of life long disability or death in the 1-2% range
The new endocrine drugs — ozempic and monjauro block hormones of hunger and recent studies show monjauro as superior to ozempic.
As such…the outlook for bariatric surgeons in my judgment is quite bearish. One injection a week for a year that seems to have sustainability as there is pretty impressive behavioral modification (terzeptide seems to also quell other cravings such as alcohol) appears to be a silver bullet at this point.
Interesting times. There may be a pharmacological cure for refractory obesity and possibly addiction.