Considering weight loss surgery options
When thinking about which of the various weight loss surgeries best suits you, you may want to take into consideration the options depending on your weight loss goals and together with an expert choose what is safest for you. There are a number of situations that the bariatric surgeon should take into consideration to evaluate if the person is a candidate for specific procedures, such as age, medical history, quality of life, physical conditions, to decide if you are a good candidate for weight loss surgery.
Remember that not everyone should consider Bariatric Surgery or gastric bypass surgery. First try to improve healthy habits, appropriate dieting, and exercise. If you have no medical or hormonal reasons for obesity and you are willing to make significant changes in your lifestyle, find a specialist in the field who can help you. Here is some useful information about different types of weight-loss surgeries.
Most weight loss options use minimally invasive techniques (laparoscopic surgery). They reduce considerably the volume of foods that a normal stomach can hold causing a combination of both gastric restriction and malabsorption of nutrients. The most common weight-loss surgeries are gastric bypass, sleeve gastrectomy, adjustable gastric band, and biliopancreatic diversion with duodenal switch.
The roux-en-Y, also called Gastric Bypass sleeve surgery is an option to combat the excess body weight in obese patients. For this procedure a small stomach pouch is created by dividing the top of the stomach from the rest of it, then the small intestine is also divided into two portions to be connected to the upper stomach. This portion of the stomach pouch is smaller which means that the patients will feel satiated with less food. On the other hand, there is no longer a segment of the small intestine this would reduce the absorption of calories and nutrients.
It alters the stomach and intestines permanently and there is a potential risk of dumping syndrome or the body not getting enough vitamins. The risk is reduced when the doctor uses laparoscopy.
Mini-Bypass Surgery is a similar but easier procedure and requires a less complicated technique than Gastric Bypass. It is still a restrictive and malabsorptive approach, meaning less food ingest and fewer calories to absorb.
Unlike the gastric bypass, in the Mini-Bypass the surgeon does not cut the small intestine, it is just attached to a new stomach pouch, its size is reduced to 1-2 oz. This way there is a more rapid weight loss since the smaller stomach pouch limits the amount of food that can be eaten and the intestinal rerouting reduces the calories and minerals absorbed by the body.
Another restrictive method is The Adjustable Gastric band -the band-. In this procedure, an inflatable band is placed around the upper part of the stomach creating a smaller pouch. The recovery is faster and can be removed by a doctor.
A candidate for this kind of procedures is a person whose efforts to lose weight through exercise programs and diet have failed, adults with an MBI higher than 40, BMI of 35 or more in teenagers, or in the presence of severe health problems related to body weight such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure or sleep apnea.
Gastric sleeve surgery or vertical sleeve gastrectomy is one of the most popular bariatric surgery procedures, among weight loss surgeons and obese people looking for effective weight loss treatment, due to its numerous health benefits to combat morbid obesity. It facilitates faster weight loss safely by changing the levels of hormones that control the desire to eat. It is expected a 60-70% of excess weight loss in the first two years while lowering your cholesterol levels and increasing your well-being.
It is a laparoscopic procedure in which a segment of the stomach is removed, with this, part of the hunger-producing hormone that acts on the brain and controls the desire to eat, is removed. We are talking about a simpler procedure compared to gastric bypass as no device is implanted, besides it does not require periodical adjustments, and the recovery is faster compared to other surgeries.
One of the main advantages of this type of surgery is that the digestive system remains intact, thus digestion occurs normally, and it does not cause malabsorption or deficiency of nutrients. This makes it safer than restrictive or malabsorptive surgeries especially for patients who suffer from many health problems. The number of pounds people lose depends on the individual, recent physical results have shown great achievements especially with patients with a body mass of 35-45. This procedure has shown minimal disadvantages.
Non Surgical Weight Loss Procedures
Endoscopic weight loss procedures are a less invasive option for people who do not want or do not qualify for bariatric surgeries. These are nonsurgical procedures that work by placing special devices or medications into the gastrointestinal tract. The entire process usually takes less than a 24 hours hospital stay while a surgery takes months of preparation and days of recovery.
Gastric Balloons are an option for patients whose body mass is between 30-40. During this procedure, a balloon will be inserted into the stomach through the mouth into the digestive tract and it will be connected to a port on the outside of the abdomen. The patient will connect a tube and empty part of the stomach contents. About 30 percent of calories will be removed before the body has the chance to absorb them.
Surgical Complications
It is difficult to predict how successful an individual patient will manage any bariatric surgery. A bariatric revision surgery would be necessary if the patient presents complications or intolerance on the initial surgery. There are cases when patients find it difficult to live with a band and decide to change to an alternative procedure. Or if the patient eats too much at once, it stretches the upper part of the stomach, so the patient stops losing weight or regaining the lost weight, in this case, is recommended an endoscopic gastric bypass revision.
In any case, there are possible post-operation symptoms and complications such as discomfort, bloating, pain, sweating, weakness, and diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, inflammation of the skin; depending on the surgery for weight loss. Losing weight and bringing your blood sugar control to normal before surgery may lower the chances of complications, these are also less likely if the surgery is done by experts.
The long-term success of the procedure requires following a strict diet and exercise plan. Your new diet after bariatric surgeries should be very healthy, mainly whole foods, minimal sugar, no dairy, no processed foods, to name a few. A dietitian will explain what and how much you can eat and drink.If you have already decided to have a gastric bypass sleeve, at BARISTIC we can help you, our years of experience and professionalism have helped many patients achieve their goals. Contact us for more information!
