How to Get a Second Opinion Before Lap Band Surgery

Doctors may discourage some patients from having Lap Band surgery performed if they are unsure whether the procedure is appropriate for them. Alternatively, your current doctor may strongly recommend weight loss surgery, while you may be slightly hesitant. When it comes to maintaining your health, getting a second opinion from a different doctor can provide you with an additional perspective and added peace of mind.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Visit Another Doctor for a Second Opinion Before Lap Band Surgery

1. Contact your insurance provider to identify doctors who perform Lap Band surgery and are covered by your health insurance policy. Multiple doctors within the same practice are often included in the network of doctors that you will be allowed to visit under your health insurance policy.

2. Schedule an appointment with a second doctor who performs Lap Band surgeries.

3. Prepare to discuss the concerns raised by the first doctor whom you visited when you get a second opinion. These concerns may have been based on information not available to your new Lap Band doctors. This information may affect the appropriateness of Lap Band surgery and can have consequences on your health.

4. Meet with the second doctor and discuss your desire (or reluctance) to have Lap Band surgery performed.

5. Answer questions honestly regarding your lifestyle habits and willingness to adapt after Lap Band surgery. Both Lap Band surgery and gastric bypass surgery, the two most common weight loss surgeries, require lifestyle changes for you to experience their maximum benefits.

6. Decide if you want to proceed with Lap Band surgery after you get a second opinion about the procedure.

Tips & Warnings

• Before you get a second opinion about Lap Band surgery, you can assess its appropriateness for you by calculating your body mass index (BMI). Lap Band surgery is generally recommend for patients over 18 years old who are severely or morbidly obese and whose weight puts them at a very high health risk. You can find a BMI calculator at the National Heart and Lung Institute (see Resources below).
• If the consensus of both doctors is that Lap Band surgery is good for you, research the experience and success that each doctor has had with the surgery.
• Some insurance companies may require you to get a second opinion before having Lap Band surgery performed. Failure to do so may make you responsible for the cost of your Lap Band surgery.

Resources

• BMI calculator from the National Heart and Lung Institute

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