Introduction: In the last decade, laparoscopic, adjustable silicone gastric banding for morbid obesity has gained widespread use, owing to two important improvements: The surgical procedure can be performed laparoscopically and the weight loss can be regulated by adjusting the silicone band by a simple percutaneous technique.
Material and methods: Over a 2-year period, we followed up 33 patients admitted to the clinic for morbid obesity. Sixteen patients preferred the conventional diet treatment (1), seven patients underwent an operation (2), and ten patients were motivated for operation, but were found to be unfit and were treated by diet (3).
Results: The excess loss of body weight was 25% in group 1, 60% in group 2, and 0% in group 3.
Conclusion: Laparoscopic, adjustable gastric banding can help the severely obese patients when diets and pharmacological treatment have failed. The resulting loss of weight is highly dependent on careful follow-up by a professional obesity team.