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.
Gastric Bypass surgery is becoming increasingly more popular for the morbid obese. For some people, there just isn't any other alternative to get rid of the excess weight. In order to qualify for the surgery, you must have a body mass index of more than 40, which usually translates to being 100 or more pounds overweight. Gastric Bypass surgery is a procedure in which the surgeon will create a pouch out of your stomach, divide the stomach and then connect the pouch directly to the intestine, basically ?bypassing? the lower stomach. The whole idea is to limit the amount food that the patient can consume and to shorten up the digestive track so that fewer calories can be absorbed by the patients body. Since the person cannot consume as much food, they are not going to consume as many calories and thus force the body to use stored fat.
As with any surgery, there are certain risks associated with the gastric bypass procedure and they include the following: bleeding, infections, further surgeries to correct complications, gallstones from such a drastic weight loss in a short amount of time, gastritis, vomiting (from eating more than the stomach pouch can hold), iron or vitamin B12 deficiencies, and calcium deficiency.
A common side effect that you will often hear about with gastric bypass surgery is something known as "dumping syndrome". The symptoms for dumping syndrome include nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, bloated feeling, dizziness and sweating, but these symptoms can be reduced considerably by strictly following your dietitian's guidelines.
As far as what to expect after surgery, the weight loss results are usually good. Patients generally lose an average of 10 pounds per month and have their weight level off around 18 and 24 months after the surgery. Typically, the greatest weight change occurs at the beginning, because the patient is restricted to a liquid diet for awhile.
The patient will find themselves following up with their doctor as well as a dietitian many times during the first year so that he or she can keep a close eye on your physical and mential health status.
Keep in mind that gastric bypass surgery is not a miracle cure for weight loss. Although it helps to train you to eat less and get the feeling of being full faster, the patient still has plenty of work of their own to do. It is an absolute must to exercise and eat properly to fully benefit from the procedure.
Both Craig Thompson & Reggie Dunn are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Craig Thompson has sinced written about articles on various topics from Gastric Bypass, Aquarium Fish. Craig Thompson, better known as "Big T," a former sumo wrestler who used to tip the scales at 400 pounds has since reinvented himself as a singer and bandleader. As one of the earliest to have. Craig Thompson's top article generates over 33100 views. to your Favourites.
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