Step 5: Gastric Bypass Surgery

Weight loss surgery involves one or both of the following approaches:

• Restrictive procedures result in a smaller stomach pouch. Normally, the stomach can hold about 6 1/2 cups or 1500 milliliters of food. Because a surgically modified, smaller stomach pouch holds less (usually about 1/4 cup), you must eat considerably smaller portions. Also, because of surgical alterations made to the connection between the stomach and the intestine, food passes much more slowly from the stomach into the intestine. This allows you to feel full much longer after eating.
• Malabsorptive procedures alter the pattern of flow from your stomach to your intestine, decreasing the number of calories absorbed by the intestine.

The next few steps explain some of the most common forms of weight loss surgery.

Gastric bypass surgery

Gastric bypass surgeries are combination procedures that use both restriction and malabsorption to achieve weight loss. They are the most common types of weight loss surgery performed. The most frequently performed type of gastric bypass is called the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass.

In Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, staples are used to permanently close off part of the stomach. This leaves only a small stomach pouch for the food you eat. Additionally, a Y-shaped piece derived from an upper portion of the small intestine is then attached to this small stomach pouch. As a result, food from your stomach pouch bypasses the initial sections of the intestine, which normally would absorb calories and nutrients after eating.

Gastric bypass surgery can be performed using a traditional open technique or through laparoscopic surgery, depending on your circumstances and the decision of your surgeon. The traditional open technique involves an incision in the abdomen that allows the surgeon to visualize and access your stomach and intestine. Laparoscopic surgery uses smaller incisions and a small video camera that projects views of your stomach and intestine onto a monitor in the operating room. Both methods are routinely performed. Talk to your doctor about these two approaches and which would be appropriate for you.

Not surprisingly, there are numerous other variations on the gastric bypass approach. (To learn more about one of these, the biliopancreatic diversion, click here.)

The benefits of gastric bypass surgery

• The procedure is a proven, accepted long-term weight control tool with established health benefits.
• Gastric bypass surgery (malabsorptive techniques) tends to produce greater weight loss than do surgeries that use only restrictive techniques.
• Over half of weight loss surgery patients lose about two-thirds of their excess weight within two years. While some weight rebound may occur, most patients can keep off roughly 100 pounds of the weight they've lost over the long-term.
• Many of the serious complications of obesity may resolve or improve after weight loss, including diabetes, high blood pressure, sleep apnea, joint pain, and incontinence.

The potential complications of gastric bypass surgery

The risks include, but are not limited to the usual risks of any surgery, which involves general anesthesia, including problems with:

• Breathing, pneumonia
• Blood clots
• Bleeding
• Hernias at the site of the incision
• Infection

The risks specific to gastric bypass surgery include:

• Leaking or rupture along the stapled area of the stomach
• Gallstones
• Stomach ulcers
• Nausea and vomiting, especially if you overeat
• Dumping syndrome (a condition in which you eat too much sugar or fat, resulting in symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, shakiness, dizziness, and sweating)
• Nutritional deficiencies (such as iron, calcium, vitamin B12, and folic acid)
• Blocked intestine (bowel obstruction)
• Stretching of the stomach pouch - if you repeatedly overeat, you may slowly increase the size of the stomach pouch, thus defeating the purpose of having undergone gastric bypass surgery in the first place
• Hair loss
• Constipation
• Excess skin after weight loss

Although you may not be able to avoid all complications, here is how to minimize risks after surgery:

• Closely follow recommended meal size.
• Take small bites.
• Chew slowly and thoroughly.
• Take 20-30 minutes to eat each meal.
• Follow recommended amounts of fat and sugar you eat at each meal.
• Consult a dietician for how to maintain the most nutritious diet possible, advice on nutritional supplements, and information on taking fiber to avoid constipation.

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