Gastric bypass surgery makes your stomach smaller. This causes you to feel full with less food so you consume fewer calories. The procedure also bypasses part of your small intestine, so fewer calories are actually absorbed into your system. Fewer calories will ultimately lead to weight loss.
When you eat food, it passes through the esophagus and enters into the stomach, where gastric acids soften the food and begin to dissolve it. Next, this semi-liquid mixture enters into the small intestine, where most of the calories and essential nutrients are absorbed by your body. Finally, whatever is left passes into the large intestine and eventually through the colon as it is expelled from the body. Gastric bypass surgery restructures the stomach and intestinal system, resulting in intentional malabsorption and limiting the patient's ability to eat large quantities of food.
Common Gastric Bypass Procedures
The most common gastric bypass surgery is a Roux-en-Y gastric bypass. The surgeon will create a small pouch at the top of the stomach using surgical staples. Next, he will connect this smaller pouch directly to the middle of the small intestine (called the jejunum). This causes the food to bypass the lower part of the stomach and the first part of the small intestine (called the duodenum).
Historically, the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass was does as an open procedure, which means the surgeon makes a large incision in the outer stomach wall to access the abdominal cavity. Today, the laparoscopic procedure is more common for those who qualify. This method is performed by making up to five small incisions in the outer stomach wall and using extremely small instruments and a tiny camera to guide them.
Risks and Benefits of Gastric Bypass Surgery
Typically, the surgery requires a two to six day hospital stay, depending on which procedure you have done. Usually, you can return to normal activities within three to five weeks. The type of work you do may require a longer convalescence period.
Some of the benefits of gastric bypass surgery are: · Most people lose between 60% and 80% of their excess weight over a two to three year period. · The majority of patients manage to keep at least 50% of their excess weight off permanently. · Other obesity-related health problems, such as diabetes and high blood pressure, are often minimized or eliminated.
There are also several serious risks with gastric bypass surgery, such as: · Peritonitis, a severe infection caused by a leak from the stomach into the abdominal cavity from a ruptured staple or stitch. · The possibility of a blood clot breaking away from the surgical area and getting caught in the lung (called a pulmonary embolism).
However, recent studies indicate that only about 2% to 3% of Roux-en-Y gastric bypass patients die within 90 days of the procedure. (Source: "Gastric Bypass - Let the Morbidly Obese Beware", by Neil Osterweil, Senior Associate Editor, MedPage Today.) Common Side Effects of Gastric Bypass Surgery
Gastric bypass surgery can also cause several less serious short- and long-term side effects, such as:
· Dumping syndrome, which can occur when food moves too quickly through the small intestine. This disorder causes nausea, weakness, sweating, faintness, and possibly diarrhea soon after eating and is generally caused by eating highly refined foods, like sugars.
· Developing gallstones or a nutritional deficiency, such as anemia or osteoporosis.
· The connection between the stomach and the intestines can narrow, causing nausea and vomiting after eating.
· Patients can develop stomach ulcers or a hernia.
· The bypassed part of the stomach can enlarge, causing bloating and hiccups.
Of course, any surgery has some risks associated with it. That is why it is essential that you consider all of the benefits and risks associated with gastric bypass surgery and talk them over with your doctor and perhaps even a mental health professional.
Showing posts with label gastric bypass surgery. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gastric bypass surgery. Show all posts
Saturday, 25 December 2010
Monday, 8 November 2010
How Gastric Bypass Surgery is Saving Lives
Many people suffering from morbid obesity find it difficult to lose weight through traditional means of healthy eating and exercise. Gastric bypass surgery is saving lives with an effective method for weight loss and lifelong weight management. With the help of gastric bypass surgery, patients are able to lose weight and resolve health conditions associated with obesity. Learn more and discover if gastric bypass surgery is right for you.
The Benefits of Gastric Bypass Surgery
Gastric bypass surgery is the top weight loss surgery
in the United States. It’s considered safer and more effective than all other weight loss surgeries. When accompanied by behavioral modification through diet and exercise, gastric bypass surgery can improve the quality of life.
Gastric bypass surgery is not just about losing weight. Many people who are severely overweight may suffer from high blood pressure and cholesterol, Type 2 Diabetes, heart disease, reflux disease and sleep apnea, among other health conditions. Gastric bypass surgery can be the road to a healthier way of life.
How Gastric Bypass Surgery Works
Gastric bypass surgery achieves weight loss by altering the digestive system. The procedure takes a small section of the stomach and attaches it to the lower intestine, bypassing the lower stomach and nutrient absorbing duodenum. The small pouch collects food, limiting the amount a patient can intake and digest.
Am I a Candidate for Gastric Bypass Surgery?
Gastric bypass surgery may be an option for patients who have not achieved weight loss results through traditional diet and exercise. Gastric bypass surgery is for people who are morbidly obese and suffer from weight related health conditions. General criterion for gastric bypass surgery is a body mass index (BMI) of 40 or greater. You may also qualify with a BMI of 35 or higher if you have weight related health conditions.
Is Gastric Bypass Surgery Right for Me?
An important thing to keep in mind is that the gastric bypass surgery procedure is not a substitute for traditional weight loss methods. If you elect to have gastric bypass surgery, you must follow specific diet and exercise directions assigned by the medical staff. Your success is largely dependent on your ability to develop healthy eating and exercise habits.
In order to qualify for gastric bypass surgery, you will need to complete a thorough screening process. An examination by a staff of medical professionals, including a physician, surgeon, psychologist and dietitian is necessary. The doctors will evaluate your medical history, current health risks and psychological profile to determine whether gastric bypass surgery is a suitable route to take.
What is the procedure like?
Gastric bypass surgery usually takes around four hours to complete. Because the procedure requires a general anesthesia, a hospital stay between three and five days is required. Medical professionals will also want to monitor the success of your surgery.
Following the procedure, you will follow a strict 12-week diet in order to slowly reintroduce solid foods. Adjusting to the new size of your stomach can prove somewhat difficult. You’ll need to eat very small meals throughout the day to avoid vomiting and chest pains. You can increase your food intake with time, but never to the level prior to gastric bypass surgery.
Considerable weight loss occurs in most patients who successfully follow a recommended diet and exercise program outlined by the doctor. The average loss of excess weight is 75 percent after one year. Continued efforts on your part contribute to even more weight loss.
Gastric Bypass surgery and Cosmetic Surgery
A number of options for cosmetic surgery are available to deal with excess skin after weight-loss surgery. Patients who have lost a substantial amount of weight may benefit from a body lift, which provides a comprehensive approach to body contouring for excess skin. A body lift can also be combined with cosmetic laser surgery to diminish scars and stretch marks. You can find out more about your options for cosmetic surgery after gastric bypass, as well as, cosmetic surgery financing through DocShop.com.
Understand the Risks of Gastric Bypass Surgery
As with all other surgeries, gastric bypass surgery comes with its own set of possible risks and complications. Some of the more serious risks include blood clots in the legs, stomach leakage, pneumonia and death. Other less severe complications may include vomiting and diarrhea, nausea, dehydration, gallstones, hernia and vitamin deficiency.
The Benefits of Gastric Bypass Surgery
Gastric bypass surgery is the top weight loss surgery
in the United States. It’s considered safer and more effective than all other weight loss surgeries. When accompanied by behavioral modification through diet and exercise, gastric bypass surgery can improve the quality of life.
Gastric bypass surgery is not just about losing weight. Many people who are severely overweight may suffer from high blood pressure and cholesterol, Type 2 Diabetes, heart disease, reflux disease and sleep apnea, among other health conditions. Gastric bypass surgery can be the road to a healthier way of life.
How Gastric Bypass Surgery Works
Gastric bypass surgery achieves weight loss by altering the digestive system. The procedure takes a small section of the stomach and attaches it to the lower intestine, bypassing the lower stomach and nutrient absorbing duodenum. The small pouch collects food, limiting the amount a patient can intake and digest.
Am I a Candidate for Gastric Bypass Surgery?
Gastric bypass surgery may be an option for patients who have not achieved weight loss results through traditional diet and exercise. Gastric bypass surgery is for people who are morbidly obese and suffer from weight related health conditions. General criterion for gastric bypass surgery is a body mass index (BMI) of 40 or greater. You may also qualify with a BMI of 35 or higher if you have weight related health conditions.
Is Gastric Bypass Surgery Right for Me?
An important thing to keep in mind is that the gastric bypass surgery procedure is not a substitute for traditional weight loss methods. If you elect to have gastric bypass surgery, you must follow specific diet and exercise directions assigned by the medical staff. Your success is largely dependent on your ability to develop healthy eating and exercise habits.
In order to qualify for gastric bypass surgery, you will need to complete a thorough screening process. An examination by a staff of medical professionals, including a physician, surgeon, psychologist and dietitian is necessary. The doctors will evaluate your medical history, current health risks and psychological profile to determine whether gastric bypass surgery is a suitable route to take.
What is the procedure like?
Gastric bypass surgery usually takes around four hours to complete. Because the procedure requires a general anesthesia, a hospital stay between three and five days is required. Medical professionals will also want to monitor the success of your surgery.
Following the procedure, you will follow a strict 12-week diet in order to slowly reintroduce solid foods. Adjusting to the new size of your stomach can prove somewhat difficult. You’ll need to eat very small meals throughout the day to avoid vomiting and chest pains. You can increase your food intake with time, but never to the level prior to gastric bypass surgery.
Considerable weight loss occurs in most patients who successfully follow a recommended diet and exercise program outlined by the doctor. The average loss of excess weight is 75 percent after one year. Continued efforts on your part contribute to even more weight loss.
Gastric Bypass surgery and Cosmetic Surgery
A number of options for cosmetic surgery are available to deal with excess skin after weight-loss surgery. Patients who have lost a substantial amount of weight may benefit from a body lift, which provides a comprehensive approach to body contouring for excess skin. A body lift can also be combined with cosmetic laser surgery to diminish scars and stretch marks. You can find out more about your options for cosmetic surgery after gastric bypass, as well as, cosmetic surgery financing through DocShop.com.
Understand the Risks of Gastric Bypass Surgery
As with all other surgeries, gastric bypass surgery comes with its own set of possible risks and complications. Some of the more serious risks include blood clots in the legs, stomach leakage, pneumonia and death. Other less severe complications may include vomiting and diarrhea, nausea, dehydration, gallstones, hernia and vitamin deficiency.
Thursday, 18 June 2009
Is Gastric Bypass Right for You?
Gastric bypass is a form of weight-loss surgery done on a lot of Americans today. The reason is because more and more Americans are suffering from obesity and excessive weight problems. In some cases, a gastric bypass is the only way to make losing weight possible. For most of us, gastric bypass is merely an option. The American Society for Bariatric Surgery reports that there were more than 63,000 of such surgeries being done in the United States alone in the year 2002.
However, it is important to note that a Gastric Bypass is not the right surgery for everyone. Think carefully because a gastric bypass is a very important surgery. It is not the magical solution to your weight problems and you will need to do extensive research before you commit to it. We have to emphasize that Gastric Bypass has a very high rate of complications although the procedure may sound relatively simple and effortless. Most doctors who perform gastric bypass would advise the patient to undergo a low-calorie diet for at least 6 months before they go for gastric bypass surgery. Undergoing a gastric bypass surgery, you may have to bear with the consequence of a possible life-threatening complication as a result of the gastric bypass surgery. Your doctor would be in the best position to advice you on whether you’re right for gastric bypass. Emotional and physical issues may have to be taken into account because this is essential to your recovery after the gastric bypass surgery.
However, because of the many possible dangers of undergoing a gastric bypass surgery, the Bariatrics Society designed and launched a program called the mini gastric bypass surgery. The mini gastric bypass surgeries are the less extensive versions of the more commonly used gastric bypass surgery. The mini gastric bypass surgery actually reconfigures the stomach so that absorption of food is reduced irregardless of how much food that person consumed. A mini gastric bypass surgery also changes the way food is absorbed. The mini gastric bypass surgery takes a shorter time to perform and the recovery for the patient is quicker too. However, there aren’t that many researches and studies done on mini gastric bypass surgeries as opposed to a major gastric bypass surgeries, therefore, many insurance companies cover the major gastric bypass surgery but not the mini gastric bypass surgery!
Dakota Caudilla, journalist, and website builder Dakota Caudilla lives in Texas. He is the owner and co-editor of http://www.obesity-solutions.net on which you will find a longer, more detailed version of this article.
However, it is important to note that a Gastric Bypass is not the right surgery for everyone. Think carefully because a gastric bypass is a very important surgery. It is not the magical solution to your weight problems and you will need to do extensive research before you commit to it. We have to emphasize that Gastric Bypass has a very high rate of complications although the procedure may sound relatively simple and effortless. Most doctors who perform gastric bypass would advise the patient to undergo a low-calorie diet for at least 6 months before they go for gastric bypass surgery. Undergoing a gastric bypass surgery, you may have to bear with the consequence of a possible life-threatening complication as a result of the gastric bypass surgery. Your doctor would be in the best position to advice you on whether you’re right for gastric bypass. Emotional and physical issues may have to be taken into account because this is essential to your recovery after the gastric bypass surgery.
However, because of the many possible dangers of undergoing a gastric bypass surgery, the Bariatrics Society designed and launched a program called the mini gastric bypass surgery. The mini gastric bypass surgeries are the less extensive versions of the more commonly used gastric bypass surgery. The mini gastric bypass surgery actually reconfigures the stomach so that absorption of food is reduced irregardless of how much food that person consumed. A mini gastric bypass surgery also changes the way food is absorbed. The mini gastric bypass surgery takes a shorter time to perform and the recovery for the patient is quicker too. However, there aren’t that many researches and studies done on mini gastric bypass surgeries as opposed to a major gastric bypass surgeries, therefore, many insurance companies cover the major gastric bypass surgery but not the mini gastric bypass surgery!
Dakota Caudilla, journalist, and website builder Dakota Caudilla lives in Texas. He is the owner and co-editor of http://www.obesity-solutions.net on which you will find a longer, more detailed version of this article.
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