Surgery Benefits

Why choose the REALIZE^® Solution for gastric banding?

The REALIZE Solution^† gives you more than an adjustable gastric band. The REALIZE^® Adjustable Gastric Band works together with the REALIZE mySUCCESS^® Program to help you achieve and maintain a healthier weight. Experts agree that bariatric surgery patients need help to lose weight and keep it off. That's why we recruited bariatric surgeons, dietitians, and behavior modification specialists to develop REALIZE mySUCCESS^®. This Web-based clinical support tool has been shown to help frequent users lose significantly more weight in the first year after surgery.^*

The REALIZE Band is shown to help patients achieve and maintain a healthier weight

Patients in a 3-year clinical trial:

• Lost a mean of 40% of their excess weight at 1 year and 43% at 3 years.¹
• Were able to reduce their average body mass index (BMI) from 44 to 36 in the first year after surgery. Patients were able to maintain their reduced BMI through their third year.¹

See how well the REALIZE Band worked for real people. Meet our REALIZE Band patients.

No part of your stomach is stapled or removed during adjustable gastric banding surgery and your intestines are not rerouted, so you can continue to absorb nutrients from food.

Health benefits

REALIZE Band patients in the U.S. clinical trial experienced:

• A 22% increase in good cholesterol (HDL).¹
• Reductions in bad cholesterol (LDL), total cholesterol, and triglycerides.¹

Surgical weight loss options have been shown to resolve or improve the most common health conditions associated with obesity.

No adjustable gastric band is safer or more effective than the REALIZE Band³

The REALIZE Band is supported by more than 20 years of worldwide clinical experience and ongoing innovation. Outside the United States, the REALIZE Band is known as the Swedish Adjustable Gastric Band (SAGB), and it has been used in patients since 1986. Patient safety and comfort are the main principles that guided the design of the SAGB. More than 20 years of data confirm the successful performance of the original soft, low-pressure balloon design. Today, the makers of the REALIZE Band still put patient safety and comfort first.

Gastric band and port design benefits

• A sophisticated balloon design to reduce potential for tissue trauma.¹ The REALIZE Band features a high-volume, low-pressure balloon.
• A wider band to decrease the potential for band slippage.¹ The REALIZE Band is the widest band available (23 mm). That's important, because if a band slips, another surgical procedure is required to replace or adjust it.
• No adjustable gastric band has a lower leak rate than the REALIZE Band.³ If a band leaks, a second surgical procedure is required to replace it.
• A port placed without sutures (during the banding procedure) to reduce pain and time under anesthesia. The REALIZE Injection Port is placed using a unique patented port applier and requires no sutures (stitches). REALIZE Band patients may experience less port site pain and up to 19% less time under anesthesia than LAP-BAND System patients, whose ports are attached with sutures.⁴
• The lowest profile port design to minimize the appearance under the skin,¹ even as you lose weight. The REALIZE Port has a lower profile than LAP-BAND System ports.

Only the REALIZE Solution for gastric banding includes the REALIZE mySUCCESS^® Program

By choosing the REALIZE Band you will gain exclusive access after surgery to REALIZE mySUCCESS^®, a Web-based clinical support tool.

REALIZE mySUCCESS^® was designed in conjunction with bariatric surgeons, dietitians, and behavior modification specialists to guide you through two essential stages for success following surgery. Stage 1 helps you build healthy habits over the first 18 months. Stage 2 keeps you motivated, on track, and connected with your bariatric practice over the next 18 months and beyond.

You'll learn and practice strategies that will help cement your healthier habits—and help you achieve your healthier weight. Unlike My LAP-BAND Journey, REALIZE mySUCCESS^® keeps you connected with your bariatric team and allows your doctor to step in precisely when needed to keep you on track. It has been shown that REALIZE Band patients who frequently use REALIZE mySUCCESS^® lose significantly more weight.^*

REALIZE mySUCCESS^® addresses the unique needs of bariatric patients. It helps you progress from a liquid diet to solid foods, identify emotional triggers for eating, identify foods you can't tolerate, stay motivated and stick with a nutrition and fitness plan, and supplement your diet with micronutrients, in accordance with guidelines for specific bariatric procedures.

Learn more about how REALIZE mySUCCESS^® can help you achieve and maintain a healthier weight.

Start using REALIZE mySUCCESS^® now!

Anyone considering weight loss surgery is invited to start using REALIZE mySUCCESS^®. You can access a limited set of features and tools to begin changing your habits and improving your health before bariatric surgery. Only by choosing the REALIZE Solution for gastric banding, gastric bypass, or sleeve gastrectomy can you gain exclusive access to the full set of REALIZE mySUCCESS^® postoperative features and tools. See how to sign up now.

Weight loss surgery cost savings over time

A recent study shows that bariatric surgery pays for itself in about 2 years.¹¹ One important reason is that weight loss surgery may help to improve or resolve conditions associated with obesity, such as type 2 diabetes and high cholesterol,⁹ so patients save money on related prescription drugs, doctor visits, and hospital visits.¹¹ In fact, monthly savings associated with laparoscopic bariatric surgery were shown to reach more than $900 as early as 13 months following surgery.¹¹

Quality of life improvements

Clinical studies of laparoscopic bariatric surgery patients found that they felt better, spent more time doing recreational and physical activities, benefited from enhanced productivity and economic opportunities, and had more self-confidence than they did prior to surgery.⁹