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Gastric Bypass Weight Loss Surgery
Procedure
During gastric bypass malabsorptive surgery, bariatric surgeons shrink the size of the stomach either by using stomach staples (roux-en-y, biliopancreatic diversion bypass) or a gastric band/silastic ring (fobi pouch bypass). After this, the digestive food-pathway is changed, so the food bypasses the early section of the small intestine, thus reducing the amount of calories (and nutrition) which can be absorbed. Some bypass operations bypass the duodenum and jejunum completely and connect the stomach directly to the ileum, the final part of the small intestine. This drastically reduces calorie absorption. Other less severe operations ( roux-en-y) bypass a smaller length of the intestine.
Nutritional Deficiency Effects of Stomach Bypass
Several important nutrients (calcium and iron) are digested in the bypassed length of the small intestine, so one of the main post-operative risks of gastric bypass operations is chronic malnutrition. Thus lifelong vitamin and mineral supplementation is mandatory for all stomach bypass patients.
Gastric Bypass Offers Significant Weight Loss
Stomach bypass surgery is able to produce significant post-operative weight loss, which potentially makes it a very effective treatment for morbid obesity. Bypass patients typically lose 66 percent of their pre-operative excess weight within two years and maintain this weight reduction for at least 5 years. Malabsorptive surgery are generally more effective for long-term weight reduction than restrictive procedures such as lap band.
Complications of Stomach Bypass
Typical complications of this operation are anastomotic leakage, marginal ulcer, dumping sydrome (rapid gastric emptying), long-term nutrient deficiencies and weight regain along with a mortality rate of 0.1–2.5 percent. About 10-20 percent of stomach bypass patients require follow-up operations to correct complications (eg. hernias). More than one-third of obese patients who have gastric bypass surgery develop gallstones. Laparoscopic or laparoscope-assisted gastric bypass surgical techniques are equally safe and effective.
After Gastric Bypass Surgery
The success rates of stomach bypass surgeries are creating a demand for follow-up cosmetic operations designed to remove excess skin, excise pockets of localized fat and tighten loose muscle after massive weight loss. This type of cosmetic or plastic surgery includes such procedures as: tummy tuck (abdominoplasty), thigh-lift (thighplasty), body-lift (torsoplasty), belt lipectomy, panniculectomy, breast-lift (mastopexy), male breast reduction (gynecomastia), arm-lift (brachioplasty), and neck lift (Platysmaplasty). Liposuction (lipoplasty) is not generally considered to be a weight-related plastic surgery procedure as this type of suction lipectomy only removes fat - it does not remove loose skin or tighten loose muscles.
Note: Obesity surgery, whether gastric bypass or stomach banding, to treat severe clinical obesity is a serious undertaking requiring detailed consultation with your doctor and bariatric surgeon.
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