There are multiple types of surgeries designed to lose weight. These operations are not cosmetic procedures. They are designed to control the medical problems that are caused by morbid obesity.
To understand how surgery works, it is necessary to review some of the basic functions of the digestive tract. The esophagus moves food from the mouth to the stomach. The stomach serves as a container for the food. It also starts the digestive process by mixing and churning the meal and adding acid and enzymes to facilitate digestion. The churned food passes into the intestine for further mixing with digestive enzymes and bile. Also there is absorption of nutrients throughout the intestine. In the first portion of the intestine, called the duodenum, calcium and iron are absorbed. This area also is responsible for the absorption of a significant amount of vitamin B12 in the diet.
|
|
Do You Qualify for Weight Loss Surgery? |
|
|
If your BMI is 40 or greater, you may qualify for surgery. If your BMI is 35 to 40, you may qualify for surgery if you suffer from one or more of the following medical problems: Type II diabetes mellitus, hypertension, sleep apnea or other serious cardiac or pulmonary problems related to obesity. Surgery is an option when other medical attempts at weight loss have failed. Thus bariatric surgery is an acceptable alternative when more conservative treatment has failed. It is very important to have detailed documentation of long-term diagnosis of morbid obesity and of attempts at weight loss by non-surgical means. Finally, you have to be ready to make a life-long commitment to change your lifestyle. You have to alter your eating habits, develop a routine exercise regimen, and commit to life-long medical follow-up. The final determination to proceed with surgery has to be made after a detailed evaluation by your surgeon. |
|
|
Types of Weight Loss Surgery |
|
|
Operations to lose weight can be classified in three groups. The first type of surgeries act by reducing the amount of food that can be ingested. These are called restrictive operations. The most common type of these operations is the Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Banding (the Lap Band or the REALIZE Band). The operation creates a small stomach pouch that holds ½ to 1 ounce. The result is that as food enters the pouch, because of its small size, there is sensation of fullness shortly after eating.
|
|
Read more...
|
|
|
Benefits of Surgery: |
|
|
The main goal of the surgery is to prevent the devastating health effects of severe obesity. Lap Band patients can expect to lose, on average, about 50% of their excess weight. The average gastric bypass patient can expect to lose about 70% of the excess weight. This excess weight is the difference between your actual weight and your ideal weight.
|
|
Read more...
|
|
|
Negative aspects of weight loss operations: |
|
|
Like with any other major operation, bariatric surgery carries risks that may occur during or shortly after the procedure. Some of these can be severe and life-threatening. A thorough preoperative evaluation helps determine the risk of surgery. Furthermore, the extensive preoperative preparation we provide helps minimize this risk.
|
|
Read more...
|
|
|
