by Louis J. Aronne, MD, FACP,and Kathy Keenan Isoldi, MS, RD, CDE

Dr. Aronne is Former President of the North American Association for the Study of Obesity and a Fellow of the American College of Physicians. He has authored more than 40 papers and book chapters on obesity, and edited the National Institutes of Health Practical Guide to the Identification, Evaluation, and Treatment of Overweight and Obesity in Adults. He is a consultant to the VA Weight Management/ Physical Activity Executive Council. Kathy Keenan Isoldi, MS, RD, CDE, is Coordinator of Nutrition Services at The Comprehensive Weight Control Program, New York, New York. Ms. Isoldi has been counseling adult and pediatric clients seeking weight management for the past 19 years. She is currently a doctoral candidate at New York University.

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by Carol Bradley, RN, CS, MSN

From the Saint Mary’s Regional Medical Center; Adjunct Clinical Professor, Orvis School of Nursing, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada

Address for correspondence:
Carol Bradley, RN, CS, MSN, Saint Mary’s Center for Health, Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence, 645 N Arlington Ave., Suite 200, Reno, NV 89503; Phone: (775) 770-3174; Fax: (775) 770-6908; Email: carol.bradley@saintmarysreno.com.

Background

There is increasing consensus that bariatric surgery is superior to medical intervention for long-term weight loss in morbidly obese persons.[1] Most postoperative patients are able to lose a significant amount of weight, profit from reduced or resolved comorbidities, and have an improved quality of life (QOL).

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by Paul E. O’Brien, MD

Dr. O’Brien is from the Centre for Obesity Research and Education, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

Address for Correspondence: Professor Paul O’Brien, Centre for Obesity Research and Education, Monash Medical School, The Alfred Hospital, Melbourne 3004, Australia; E-mail: paul.obrien@med.monash.edu.au.

Background

Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) has now been available through most of the world for more than 12 years with the introduction of the LAP-BAND® System in 1993.[1] By the mid-1990s, this approach had rapidly become the dominant bariatric surgical procedure in Europe, the Middle East, Mexico, much of South America, and Australia. The US became one of the last to gain access for clinical use in mid-2001. Regulatory requirements and unfavorable funding by insurers or health providers have been important factors in its slower introduction to Brazil and the US.

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