Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy is a minimally invasive operation to achieve weight loss. It is categorized as a “restrictive” bariatric procedure. In this procedure a portion of the stomach is removed. This decreases or “restricts” the amount of food that a person can take in at a given time. Patients are not only restricted in how much they can eat, but they actually feel less hungry. Many people feel this operation is a good alternative to the laparoscopic gastric band because there is no introduction of foreign material into the body.

Many surgeons feel this procedure is a good procedure for the super obese patient to transition more safely to a laparoscopic roux-en-Y bypass later.