Vafa Shayani MD

Dr. Vafa Shayani completed his undergraduate degree at University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), and medical school at George Washington University in Washington, DC. He completed his general surgical residency at George Washington University and after an additional year of concentrated training in advanced laparoscopy, started his first professional appointment at Loyola University Medical Center in 1996. He ultimately attained the rank of Associate Professor of Surgery and the Director of Minimally Invasive Surgery Program at Loyola University before his departure in 2007. Since then, he has been practicing as a General and Bariatric Surgeon in Chicago metropolitan area.

Dr. Shayani is one of the experts on Lap-Band surgery in the country. He started performing gastric banding soon after its FDA approval in 2001, making him one of the first surgeons in the United States to perform this procedure. His extensive experience and successful outcomes have led to his status as a Proctor for the device manufacturer, wherein he trains and qualifies other surgeons in LAP BAND surgery. As a pioneer in the field of Bariatric Surgery, Dr. Shayani was the only surgeon from the state of Illinois who, as a principal investigator, participated in the clinical trials for both the Orbera Gastric Balloon and the air-filled Obalon gastric balloon, making him the first surgeon to implant either of those balloons in Illinois. In addition, he is the first surgeon to have implanted the Aspire Assist device in Illinois. Dr. Shayani offers all three of these FDA approved devices to his bariatric patients.

Wishing to stay at the forefronts of bariatric interventions, Dr. Shayani is now offering vBloc therapy, and implanted his first device. This is a minimally invasive surgical procedure that through blockade of signals between stomach and the brain helps with elimination of hunger, bringing about long-term weight loss for obese and morbidly obese patients. Finally, when appropriate, Dr. Shayani offers sleeve gastrectomy, the most commonly performed bariatric procedure worldwide, to his patients. Although a minimalist by philosophy, Dr. Shayani recognizes the role of more invasive stapling procedures and offers sleeve gastrectomy to those patients who are not likely to benefit from less invasive interventions.