Commentary on: The Post-Adjustable Gastric Band Abdominoplasty

As a practicing bariatric surgeon, I appreciate the opportunity to comment on the article by Dr Wu et al entitled “The Post-Adjustable Gastric Band Abdominoplasty.” The information in this article should allow plastic surgeons who perform abdominoplasties in post-adjustable gastric band patients to maintain the integrity of the banding system while still obtaining acceptable cosmetic results. As noted by the author, obesity continues to be a major problem in the United States.1 An increasing fat mass can lead to a host of medical problems, including diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and obstructive sleep apnea.2 Significant obesity also shortens the life span of the individual and negatively affects his or her quality of life.3 Unfortunately for individuals suffering from the most extreme forms of obesity (a body mass index [BMI] of ≥35), current medical therapy has not proven very effective for achieving long-term weight loss success. For this group, weight loss surgery represents their best chance to achieve a healthier weight and achieve resolution of their weight-related comorbidities.4 For this reason, along with the improved safety of weight loss surgery, more and more severely obese individuals are turning to weight loss surgery to improve their health.5 Once patients have lost weight and have seen their medical problems improve, their attention often turns to a common side effect of their weight loss success—loose skin. In my experience, almost 100% of patients …