BARIATRIC SURGERY – DEFINITION, TYPES, PROCEDURE, AND MORE

BARIATRIC SURGERY DEFINITION TYPES
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WHAT IS BARIATRIC SURGERY?

Bariatric surgery is a general term that is collectively used for many types of weight-loss surgeries. This kind of weight-loss surgery tries to make changes in your digestive system to help you out to lose weight and this is done either by reducing the amount of food intake or by reducing your ability to absorb the nutrition.

This way of weight-loss surgery is very effective and a person can lose about 30to 50 percent of their excess weight in a span of about 6 months and almost 77 to 80 percent of their excess weight in a span of about 12 months and this is also long lasting, that is the patient could maintain this 50to 60 percent of excess weight for up to 10 to 14 years after the surgery.

FACTS ABOUT WEIGHT-LOSS SURGERIES AND WHY ONE SHOULD UNDERGO IT

  • In this bariatric surgery, your fat is not removed instead of the reason of fat accumulation, that is the food intake is reduced and your ability to absorb the nutrition is reduced.
  • It is a very old type of surgery and it has always proved itself to be successful.
  • Along with reducing your excess weight this weight-loss surgery also helps in the resolution of various other health issues like type II diabetes mellitus, high cholesterol, snoring, sleep apnea, joint pain, PCOD and fatty liver disease, hence in a way it is a life- saving surgery.
  • The amount of excess weight that is lost depends from the type of surgery you have undergone and it ranges from 20% to 90%.
  • For a person with obesity, bariatric surgery is a boon, as sometimes obesity can be genetically related and an obese person may even eat less and still gain weight.
  • Weight-loss surgery allows one to eat food according to their BMI rate.
  • Some of the bariatric surgeries are reversible like mini gastric bypass and gastric band.

HOW DOES BARIATRIC SURGERY WORK?

Bariatric surgery promotes weight loss not by cutting off the fat from your body instead of by cutting off its source, that is it promotes weight loss by reducing the amount of food intake and reducing your ability to absorb nutrients and in some procedures, by altering the digestive process.

Along with other treatments for obesity, the best results are gained when it is combined with healthy eating behaviors and regular physical activities.

Bariatric surgery is a long lasting solution for your losing your excess weight and the excess weight lost by this is effective till 10 to 14 years even after the surgery.

TYPES AND PROCEDURES OF BARIATRIC SURGERY

There are basically four types of weight-loss or bariatric surgery that the patients usually undergo:

  1.  GASTRIC SLEEVE
  • Gastric sleeve surgery is also known as vertical sleeve gastrectomy
  • In this, the surgeon removes most of the part of the patient’s stomach leaving behind only a small banana-shaped part.
  • By doing this the patient’s stomach will be full by the intake of only a small amount of food
  • Taking out a part of the stomach also has an effect on the hormones and bacteria in the gastrointestinal system which affect the appetite and metabolism
  • This is an irreversible type of surgery as a part of the stomach is permanently removed
  1.  GASTRIC BYPASS
  • Gastric bypass surgery is also known as Roux-en-Y gastric bypass and is done in three steps
  • In the first step, the surgeon staples the patient’s stomach to create a small pouch and to reduce the size of the stomach so that the patient eats less as he will feel full only by eating a small amount of food
  • In the second step, the surgeon divides the small intestine into two parts and joins the smaller part directly to the small stomach pouch that he created in the first step so that most of the food will bypass the stomach and the upper part of the small intestine and hence, the body will absorb very few calories
  • In the third and the final step, the surgeon reconnects the upper part of the small intestine to a new location different from the earlier one, farther down in the lower part of the small intestine. This reconnection allows the digestive juices in the stomach to flow from the bypassed part of the small intestine to the lower part of the small intestine so that the food can be fully digested.
  • Gastric bypass is reversible but it is difficult to reverse it. However a surgeon may do it if it is medically necessary.
  1.  ADJUSTABLE GASTRIC BAND
  • It is a type of surgery in which the surgeon places a ring with an inner inflatable band around the top of the patient’s stomach to make a small pouch and hence to reduce the size of the stomach so the patient feels full after intake if even small amount of food like in gastric sleeve and gastric bypass surgery.
  • The inner band of the ring has a circular balloon inside it which is filled with saline solution.
  • The opening of the stomach pouch to the rest of the patient’s stomach can be resized by injecting or removing the saline solution through a small device that is known as the port.
  • Once the surgery is done, the patient will need to re-visit the surgeon for several follow-up visits to adjust the size of the band opening.
  • If the band causes problems or is not helping the patient to lose weight, the surgeon may remove it
  • Adjustable gastric band type of weight-loss surgery is not that popular and common as compared with gastric sleeve and gastric bypass because of the complications related with it and it also results in typically less weight loss as compared with the other two
  1.  BILIOPANCREATIC DIVERSION WITH DUODENAL SWITCH
  • Biliopancreatic diversion with duodenal switch is a surgical procedure which is also known as “mixed surgery” and it involves two separate procedures
  • The first procedure is similar to gastric sleeve, that is the size of the stomach is reduced so the person feels full after intake of even a small amount of food
  • In the second surgical procedure, the surgeon divides the small intestine into two tracts. The food moves through one tract, bypassing most of the small intestine, and this reduces the number of calories and amount of nutrients absorbed.
  • This type of surgery allows you to lose more weight as compared to the above three types, but it is still not given the first preference by many surgeons as it is most likely to cause surgery related problems and deficiency of vitamins and minerals

RECOVERY AFTER BARIATRIC SURGERY

Mostly the post-operative phase of the weight-loss surgery requires an in-stay at the hospital for about 2-3 days. If the surgery is done in a laparoscopic manner, that is the surgeon only makes small incisions, this reduces the time of recovery and hence the patient recovers early and is able to do normal activities in 3 to 5 weeks.

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