Bariatric surgery, also called weight loss surgery, is a type of procedure performed on people who are dangerously obese. The purpose of this kind of surgery is to change the anatomy of the digestive system which is designed to help patients rapidly losing weight. By reducing the size of stomach and intestines, bariatric surgery limits the amount of food a patient can eat and digest. This may lead to decreased absorption of nutrients.

Fueled by the dismal failure of dieting, the marked improvement in quality of life and the quick recovery with minimally invasive techniques, the number of weight-loss surgery procedures performed annually has increased dramatically over the last several decade. According to a report from the Department of Health and Human Service’s (HHS) Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), from 1998 to 2004, the total number of bariatric surgeries performed in the United States increased nine-fold, from 13,386 to 121,055.

Options in Bariatric Surgery
There are a number of strategies in bariatric surgery. One option is to reduce the size of the stomach with an implanted medical device (gastric banding). Other options may include the removal of a portion of the stomach (sleeve gastrectomy or biliopancreatic diversion with duodenal switch) and resecting and re-routing the small intestines to a small stomach pouch (gastric bypass surgery).

Benefits of Bariatric Surgery
Long-term studies has shown that the procedures cause significant long-term loss of weight which may help patients to recover from diabetes (T2DM), reduce cardiovascular risk factors (including hypertension and coronary artery disease) , and a general reduction in mortality of 23% to 40%. Other benefits may include an improvement in overall health, well-being and self-esteem.

The U.S. National Institutes of Health recommends bariatric surgery for obese people with a body mass index (BMI) of at least 40, and for people with BMI 35 and serious coexisting medical conditions such as diabetes. However, research is emerging that suggests bariatric surgery could be appropriate for people with a BMI of 35 to 40 with no comorbidities or a BMI of 30 to 35 with significant comorbidities.

Although most bariatric interventions, on average, do not require a lengthy hospital stay, patients need to be aware that the procedure does require a lifetime commitment to maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
In most cases, bariatric surgery is recommended as an alternative for individuals who cannot lose significant weight through exercise and dieting alone. Compared to non-surgical treatments, bariatric surgery yields the longest period of sustained weight loss in patients who have failed other therapies. Most patients undergoing bariatric surgery lose an average of one-third of the full body weight.

Bariatric Surgery - A Framework for Excellence in Patient Care - is an online service produced by Sunvalley Communication.