Can a Lap Band Leak?

The Lap-Band is a prosthetic device made out of silastic, an inert material that has been used in medical devices for decades. It does not break down or deteriorate over time and can be safely left inside the body for life. The Lap-Band is designed not to leak and has not shown deterioration in any reported studies.

A lap band leak is very rare and usually does not pose harm to the body since the fluid used for adjustments is normal.  If the cause of a leak is tubing breakage then this may cause some discomfort but the fluid from the tubing should not cause any harm.

Leaks are very rare after Lap-Band placement.  This is usually noticed by the patients losing the sense of fullness they had after eating small meals.  There is no danger from a leak because the band contains normal saline which is absorbed by the body.  It usually requires a very minor operation to repair leaks.

A lap band leak is extremely rare. The place where it can leak is either at the port or at the tubing. If a leak is suspected it can be tested under fluoroscopic (xray) guidance and the exact point of the leak can be identified. Usually the port replacement or tubing replacement can be done under local anesthesia with a very small incision over the port.

yes - the band is essentially a plastic (silicone) device, that can break and hence cause leak. if that happens, its effectiveness is lost.  if you do not need the band to be inflated to maintain satiety and weight loss, theoretically it can just be left in place as long as its not causing any other problem. aside from that, yes the malfunctioning component would need to be replaced.