Any diet, exercise or lifestyle change may not help some people significantly reduce their excess weight. It is a reality that leads to frustration, depression and in many cases, serious health problems. Fortunately, for many who are in this situation, losing weight with the help of bariatric surgery can be an option. To choose patient for bariatric surgery is a process that requires serious discussion with your doctor and your family.
Surgical Treatment of Obesity
Being overweight is a chronic and progressive disease that can affect several organs in the body.
What are the health consequences of being overweight?
People with a severe clinical picture of obesity have a medical risk of disability or premature death. At the top of the list are morbidities in adults in the form of diabetes and high blood pressure. High blood pressure caused by clinically excessive obesity can lead to heart attacks, congestive heart failure and stroke.
Additional conditions that usually cause or increase obesity are:
- Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), obesity hypoventilation syndrome, reactive airway disease
- Atherosclerosis
- Gallbladder disease, GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease), recurrent ventral hernia, fatty liver
- Diabetes, hirsutism, hyperlipidemia, hypercholesterolemia
- Frequent urinary infections, stress, urinary incontinence, irregular periods or infertility
- Degenerative diseases of the knee and hip, discus hernia, chronic nonsurgical pain in the lower back
- Multiple disorders, most of which are associated with diabetes and fungal infections in the skin folds
- Tumors of the breast, uterus, prostate, kidney, colon and pancreas
An operation that helps you lose weight
Since the term “gastric reduction surgery“, or sleeve gastrectomy, is already commonly known procedure, it is one of the surgical methods for weight loss.
Sleeve gastrectomy
- This procedure involves surgery only on the stomach (it is only a restrictive procedure) and does not include intervention on the bowel (which would also make it a malabsorptive procedure). Practically, the stomach, which looks like a pouch before surgery, is transformed into a long tube or sleeve. Sleeve gastrectomy removes about 2/3 of the stomach, allowing for faster satiety (fullness) and decreased appetite. A small “sleeve stomach” prevents food intake by allowing only a small amount to be taken in one meal.
- A small sleeve (or narrow tube) is made using a surgical stapler along the internal curve of the stomach, from the pylorus of the stomach to the esophagus.
- After the sleeve is complete, the rest of the stomach is removed.
- The sphincter (circular muscle) at the outlet stays where it is, allowing for a normal gastric emptying process, all contributing to the feeling of fullness.
The surgical team of Atlas Hospital is composed of a large number of eminent surgeons from various fields of surgery, which provides our patients with a complete support team, both preoperatively and during recovery.
Who is a candidate for bariatric surgery?
A body mass index (BMI) above 40 indicates that the person is morbidly obese and therefore a candidate for bariatric surgery. Generally speaking, this would mean that men have 45 kg of excess, while women 36 kg. Barrier procedures can also be an option for people with a body mass index between 35 and 40 who suffer from cardiopulmonary problems or life-threatening diabetes. However, as with other treatments for obesity, a successful outcome will depend on the patient’s motivation and behavior.
Benefits of bariatric surgery
The medical and emotional benefits associated with weight loss begin almost immediately after surgery. The benefits that a patient has after surgery can be:
A) Significant and permanent weight loss:
- Most patients lose weight quickly, and this trend continues 18-24 months after surgery
- Although many patients regain weight after 24 months, only a few regain their previous weight
B) Improvement or elimination of most obesity-related conditions:
- High cholesterol
- High blood pressure
- Obstructive sleep apnea (difficulty breathing during sleep)
- Hypertension
- Type 2 diabetes
- Cardiovascular diseases
- Endocrinological diseases
- Dyslipidemia
Non-surgical Weight Loss Methods – Balloon system
Atlas General Hospital also performs a non-surgical method that enables weight loss – the installation of an intragastric balloon for weight loss.
Intragastric weight loss balloon is a non-operative, non-pharmacological, minimally invasive and temporary method used as an alternative for the treatment of obesity in patients with moderate and overweight obesity, with prescribed diet and physical activity program, as well as constant medical supervision. It also has positive effects in very obese patients who need to undergo a surgical method for the treatment of obesity, because losing weight reduces the risk of surgery.
Contact us for more detailed information and schedule your examination to determine if you are a candidate for surgery that will reduce your body weight.
