Gastric Bypass Surgery – Do You Know The Risks?
September 25, 2008 by Terry
Filed under Weight Loss Surgery
Ten years ago some 20,000 weight-loss operations were undertaken in the United States each year. In the coming year that figure is likely to reach an unbelievable 200,000.
Today about 30% of the population of the United States is overweight, with about a third of these people being categorized as clinically obese. Additionally, a staggering nine million adults are more than 100 pounds overweight and are classified as morbidly obese.
For these people the normal remedy of diet and exercise simply doesn’t work and they are turning more and more towards gastric bypass surgery.
The commonest form of gastric bypass surgery now is a procedure known as Roux-en-Y which creates a pouch in the stomach, using a section of the stomach itself, that is then connected to the small intestine, bypassing a large portion of the stomach and duodenum. the procedure to hold significant quantities of food but, by bypassing the duodenum, the absorption of fat is also substantially reduced.
The growing popularity of Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery, helped along by such things as its use by a number of high-profile celebrities, expanded coverage by Medicare and some creative marketing, has led to an increase in the number of medical facilities providing the procedure. Some of these facilities are however better than others and just a few are perhaps a little too concerned with the profit to be made from the provision of gastric bypass surgery. This, in turn, presents an increasing danger for those considering surgery.
Results can be impressive, not only in terms of the weight loss achieved but also in terms of the striking improvement that can be made to the patients overall quality of life. Nonetheless, gastric bypass surgery is major surgery and is certainly not suited to everybody and is not without risks.
So just what are the risks involved?
The risks of gastric bypass surgery will obviously vary from one individual to another and anyone considering surgery should consult a doctor to discover the risks that surgery carries in their specific case. Here however, in only very general terms, are a few of risks more commonly associated with gastric bypass surgery:
Death. As with any major surgical operation there is a risk of death associated with gastric bypass surgery and estimates put the short-term risk at around one or two percent. The risk varies with other medical conditions, age and general health.
Pneumonia. Excessive weight puts additional stress on both the chest cavity and the lungs. This results in an additional risk of contracting pneumonia after surgery.
Narrowing of the opening between the stomach and small intestine. Although seldom seen, this complication may require either an outpatient procedure in which a tube is passed through your mouth to widen the narrowed opening or surgery to correct the problem.
A leak along one of the staple lines in the stomach. Infection can result from leakage around the staples and this is generally cured using antibiotics. Most cases heal in time but, once in a while, this leakage can be serious enough to need emergency surgery.
Blood clots in the legs. The risk of blood clots occurring in the legs is most commonly seen in the case of very overweight patients and, when blood clots do form, the situation can be dangerous. In some cases blood clots migrate to the lungs where they lodge themselves in the lung’s arteries producing a pulmonary embolism – a serious and life-threatening condition that damages the tissue of the lung.
Gastric bypass surgery can also give rise to dumping syndrome, a condition in which the contents of the stomach move too rapidly through the small intestine causing vomiting, diarrhoea, dizziness, nausea and sweating.
Some other often seen complications of gastric bypass surgery include gallstones, vitamin and mineral deficiency, hernia, intolerance to some foods, bleeding stomach ulcers and dehydration.
Advances in surgery are rendering gastric bypass surgery safer by the day and the arrival of laparoscopic surgery and the use of robotics, presently being evaluated at Stanford University Medical Center in California, are also reducing post-surgical complications and enabling patients to recover more quickly.
In spite of the risks for every problem case there are a thousand examples of thinner and happier people walking around. So, if you are thinking about gastric bypass surgery talk to your doctor and, while you certainly need to consider the risks, don’t rule out the procedure simply because of them.
Visit GastricBypassFacts.info for more information on gastric bypass surgery and gastric bypass surgery risks
Related Posts
