Bariatric Surgery

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Bariatric surgery, or weight loss surgery, is a type of procedure performed on people who are obese, for the purpose of losing weight. This weight loss is usually achieved by reducing the size of the stomach with an implanted medical device (gastric banding) or through removal of a portion of the stomach (sleeve gastrectomy or biliopancreatic diversion with duodenal switch) or by resecting and re-routing the small intestines to a small stomach pouch (gastric bypass surgery).

Long-term studies show the procedures cause significant long-term loss of weight, recovery from diabetes, improvement in cardiovascular risk factors, and a reduction in mortality of 23% from 40%

Health benefits of weigh loss surgery

Medical conditions that may be greatly improved after surgery include:

• High Blood Pressure
  About 60 percent of patients with high blood pressure are able to stop all medications and have a normal blood pressure, usually within two to three months after surgery. 
• High Cholesterol
  More than 70 percent of patients will develop normal cholesterol levels within two to three months. 
• Diabetes
  More than 80 percent of Type-2 diabetics obtain excellent results, usually within a few weeks after surgery.. There is no medical treatment for diabetes that can achieve as complete and profound an effect as surgery. 
• Asthma
  According to IFSO, successful bariatric surgery reduces the number and severity of asthma attacks. 
• Respiratory Insufficiency
  Improvement of exercise tolerance and breathing ability usually occurs within the first few months after surgery. Often, patients who have barely been able to walk find that they are able to participate in family activities, and even sports.
• Sleep Apnea Syndrome
  Dramatic relief of sleep apnea occurs as patients lose weight. Many report that within a year of surgery, their symptoms were completely gone, and they had even stopped snoring completely-and their spouses agree. Sleep apnea is cured in about 75 percent of patients after surgery
• Gastro-Esophageal Reflux Disease
  Relief of symptoms of reflux usually occurs within a few weeks of surgery for many patients
• Gallbladder Disease
  When gallbladder disease is present at the time of the surgery, it is "cured" by removing the gallbladder during the operation.
• Stress Urinary Incontinence
  This condition responds dramatically to weight loss and usually significant improvement in the control occurs. 
• Low Back Pain, Degenerative Disk Disease, & Degenerative Joint Disease
  Patients usually experience considerable relief of pain and disability from degenerative arthritis and disc disease and from pain in the weight-bearing joints.