Bariatric Surgery

The term "Bariatric" is derived from Greek word meaning "weight". Bariatric surgery (more commonly known as weight loss surgery) is a surgical procedure on the stomach and/or intestine to treat extreme obesity by performing various surgical methods. Obesity or overweight is not only the factor to determine a person's, physical, social, psychological and emotional health and appearance but it also makes cause of other rising medical problems such as heart diseases, diabetes, sleep apnea and other chronic abnormalities. Surgery is performed to treat obesity for removal of a fatty part of the stomach or small intestine. The treatment procedures performed for Bariatric surgery are such as Gastric bypass, Gastric banding, Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (Lap-Band) and Roux-en-Y gastric bypass. Surgery is performed by using of general anesthesia.

Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (Lap-Band) surgery is performed by making a small incision through which the surgeon inserts the camera and surgical devices to perform the surgery. This type of surgery is beneficial for the patients as it lessens the risk of infection and postoperative pain. This surgical procedure simply reduces the size of the tummy, using staples and/or a band, resulting in an extreme reduction in the quantity of food it can ingest.

Roux-en-Y gastric bypass is another surgical procedure that is widely used to perform Bariatric surgery. The surgery modifies the stomach into a small pouch and by passes the small intestine. This surgical technique has been successfully used but patients are always advised to study the risk factors before opting for Roux-en-Y gastric bypass. This surgery limits your eating of food and gives a feeling of fullness.

The Bariatric surgery procedure usually takes a few hours to perform and a few days for the patients to feel more or less healthy. By performing the obesity surgery, the size of the stomach is reduced by up to 85 percent, to the size of an egg or even the size of a thumb. Usually, its capacity is 3-4 tablespoons of food. This stomach reduction radically reduces the amount of food which can be consumed in one sitting and speeds up satiety. During bypass surgical procedure, the digestive zone below the stomach is also altered. After leaving the small stomach pouch, food is re-routed to bypass most of the duodenum and is directed into the final part of the jejunum. Because the food passes along a much reduced length of small intestine, and comes into contact with smaller quantities of digestive enzymes, fewer calories and nutrients are absorbed.

After the surgery, 2-3 days stay in hospital is required and patient can typically return to work after 2-3 weeks. Ultimately you get better appearance and achieve improved daily quality of life by removing the over weighted figure.