One type of weight-loss surgery, called Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RGB), can now be performed laparoscopically, with small incisions. During this 60- to 90-minute procedure, the surgeon sections off a portion of the stomach and reroutes part of the small intestine. Since less food is needed to feel full, patients can significantly reduce the amount of food consumed. Also, fewer calories are absorbed because part of the intestine is bypassed. As compared to traditional “open” gastric bypass surgery, laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery typically shortens a patient’s hospital visit and hastens recovery times. In addition, fewer wound-related problems occur.
When performing gastric bypass surgery with a laparoscope, a surgeon uses this small, tubular instrument with a camera attached through small incisions in the abdomen. Next, the surgeon creates a small pouch at the top of the patient’s stomach and adds a bypass around the stomach and small intestine. The new pouch is about the size of a walnut and only holds about an ounce of food. The surgeon then staples the stomach across the top and effectively seals it from the rest of the stomach. Finally, the surgeon cuts and attaches the small intestine to this new pouch.
This process benefits obese patients because the new configuration of the pouch and small intestine allows food to be redirected, bypassing most of the stomach and the first section of the small intestine (the duodenum). Food then flows into the next section of the small intestine (the jejunum) and successfully limits the patient’s ability to absorb calories. An additional benefit is that although food never enters the lower part of the stomach, the stomach remains healthy and still secretes digestive juices to aid the digestion of food in the small intestine.
Typically, patients who undergo gastric bypass surgery can expect to lose 50 to 60 percent of excess weight in the first two years following the procedure.
Key Benefits Of Gastric Bypass
In addition to the benefits of weight loss, gastric bypass has been proven to reduce or eliminate the following health challenges:
• High blood pressure – Studies indicate that 70% of surgery recipients who are taking medications for high blood pressure are able to stop taking these medications and experience a normal blood pressure within two to three months after surgery.
• High blood cholesterol – Typically, over 80% of patients will develop normal cholesterol levels within two to three months following surgery.
• Diabetes Mellitus (Type II) – Over 90% of Type II diabetics experience excellence post-surgery results. This includes normal blood sugar levels, normal Hemoglobin A 1C values, and freedom from all medications, including insulin injections.
• Asthma – Patients who have been challenged by asthma often find that after surgery they have fewer attacks, and sometimes none at all.
• Sleep Apnea Syndrome – Many patients report that within a year of surgery, sleep apnea symptoms were complete gone or greatly diminished.
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(References)
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/gastric-bypass/HQ01465
http://www.gastricbypass.com/BenefitsRisksOfSurgicalWeightLossSurgery.htm
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