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Latest Weight Loss Surgery News

Study Shows that Bariatric Surgery is Increasingly Effective and Safe

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posted by Admin User at 2014-01-20 12:22:00

For some people who need to lose weight, eating right and exercising is simply not enough. Obesity is a multifaceted metabolic condition, further complicated by issues such as diabetes and musculoskeletal disease, making both dieting and exercise difficult. People who suffer from these problems may be good candidates for weight loss procedures, also referred to as bariatric surgery.

There are several different kinds of bariatric surgery, including gastric bypass surgery, gastric banding surgery, and gastric sleeve surgery. Gastric bypass is a procedure where the surgeon makes the patient’s stomach smaller by creating a small pouch within the stomach and connecting that pouch to the small intestine. This will limit the amount of food that the patient can eat, which leads to weight loss.

Recent studies show that these surgeries are increasingly effective, according to a study of more than 180,000 patients performed between 2003 and 2012 that was recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). The data released by the study shows that bariatric surgery has led to a high rate of remission of both diabetes and high blood pressure. The study also showed an average Body Mass Index (BMI) loss of between 12 to 17 percent five years after surgery.

Complications from surgery have also decreased, according to the study. The 30-day mortality rate is now 0.08 percent, down from 0.3 percent in the 1980s. However, as with all surgical procedures, there are some risks, including excessive bleeding, adverse reaction to anesthesia, blood clots, and infection.

RESOURCE:
http://connect.asmbs.org/JAMASurgery-December