Weight Loss Surgery for the Dangerously Obese

Weight loss surgery, otherwise known as bariatric surgery, is a term that encompasses all surgical treatments aimed at correcting morbid obesity, the target site of which is the gasrointestinal tract, specifically the stomach and intestine. By morbid obesity it is meant that one can die due to being obese as it is a risk factor for disorders such as atherosclerosis, diabetes mellitus, obstructive sleep apnea (inability to breathe or obstruction in breathing when sleeping) and most other heart diseases. Indications that you would need bariatric surgery are if you have a body mass index (BMI, or the ratio of your height to your weight) of at least 40 kilograms per square meter, you have employed but failed an adequate diet and exercise program (whether with drug therapy or not), and you present obesity-related conditions such as aforementioned.

There are two common procedures: the Roux-en-Y, which is a type of gastric bypass surgery that closes off part of the stomach and bypasses a portion of the small intestine, and gastric banding, which is a procedure involving a restrictive band being placed around the stomach. Gastric bypass is the more common general form of weight loss surgery in the United States and surgeons have grown more comfortable with the operation as it has been a treatment existing for almost 50 years now. It is considered the gold standard of newer bariatric procedures.

The intended effect is for a person to quickly get the feeling of fullness with fewer bites of food. This is achieved through the decreased volume of the stomach and small intestine in gastric bypass surgery, and through the restrictive band that hinders expansion of the stomach to its maximum size with gastric banding. There still exist weight loss surgery complications, however, and they are quite frequent, especially among those over 40 years of age. Common problems include gastric dumping syndrome (or rapid gastric emptying, which may sound good but is actually otherwise; food normally should have more time passing through the gastrointestinal tract, getting digested, dissolved, and churned along the way), surgical site leakage, infections and pneumonia. If you are to undergo weight loss surgery, a hospital stay of one to two days is typically required. Other positive results aside from long-term weight loss are recovery from diabetes, decrease in or improvement of cardiovascular risk factors, and a 20-40% drop in mortality. These effects are achieved remarkably especially in bariatric centers and with surgeons who have had extensive experience in the field.