Sunday, April 21, 2013

Learn About 3 Types of Bariatric Surgery

There are a few types of bariatric surgery you may benefit from. Your doctor will determine which one you should get, though you may also turn out to be a great candidate for a combination of a few procedures. While you await your consultation with your doctor, you should find out what some of the main options are.
A duodenal switch is one type of bariatric surgery your doctor may suggest for you. It involves reducing the size of your stomach by removing the majority of it. The result is that you need a lot less food than usual to feel full, which can cause you to lose weight over time. In addition, your surgeon will likely also perform an intestinal bypass that helps your intestines absorb fewer of the fats you eat. This is another method by which you can reduce what you weigh, while also avoiding gaining the weight back when you do happen to eat any fats.
One option you have probably heard of is a gastric bypass. This treatment requires the doctor to create a pouch in the stomach that causes you to eat less food. In addition, part of the small intestine is then connected to the pouch so that fewer foods are absorbed into the body. The result is that you can lose several pounds over the course of a few months. In fact, many severely obese people are able to lose approximately half their body weight in less than a year. If you are considered very obese, or are simply obese with some health issues related to what you weigh, you may benefit from this type of bariatric surgery.
Some people do best with a laparoscopic gastric band. This means a band is positioned around your stomach so that the top part of it cannot grow. This means you need less food to fill your stomach, leading to fast weight loss. If your surgeon thinks you would benefit from this kind of bariatric surgery, you should receive answers to any questions you have. Keep in mind that this treatment uses the laparoscopic method, which makes it less invasive than many surgeries since only small incisions are necessary so a tiny camera can fit inside the body during the procedure.
Your surgeon should be able to let you know which of these bariatric surgery options should work best for you. In fact, these are just a few choices, so you may find something else entirely works better instead. Only a consultation with a doctor will tell you what you need to know when it comes to the right treatment for your body.