Weight Loss Surgery

A pilot study is helping severely obese people by looking at the alternatives to gastric bypass surgery.The study is being done at the University of Buffalo. It focuses on changing behavior, limiting calories and boosting activities."Individuals will not only learn more about themselves, but also how to live in the very difficult and toxic food environment in which we all live," said Dr. Michael Noe.Experts say weekly meetings gave participants information and support.On the meetings, Dr. Noe added, "To learn more about themselves, th .... More »

SAO PAULO, Brazil -- Many people want or need weight loss surgery. Many are not covered by health insurance. They need a low-cost, safe and fixed-price alternative. Franco e Rizzi offers a unique surgical program with a fixed price of $11,497 (cost of surgical complications included).Obese people without insurance coverage are obliged to search seriously for the best obesity surgery price and service their money can buy.Search the web! Estimates are easy to obtain. What is not easy is obtaining a firm commitment! Most estimates do not .... More »

The Fingerlakes Weight Loss Program at Auburn Memorial Hospital will add laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding surgery beginning in December.The surgery is designed for those who want to lose more than 100 pounds. The surgery typically involves a 23-hour hospital stay, but can even be done as an outpatient procedure in some cases. Patients usually can resume normal activities within a week. The procedure is reversible.Anyone interested in the surgery can attend hour-long, free information sessions with Dr. Carl Weiss III at 4 p.m. W .... More »

When Jim Bouler, 58, graduated high school, he weighed a healthy 163 pounds. Little did he know, by the time he would reach his mid-50s, he would be suffering from morbid obesity. Battling ailments such as sleep apnea, high blood pressure, chronic indigestion and severe lymphdemia while carrying a staggering 473 pounds, Jim Bouler simply "couldn't go anymore."Jim's story is becoming more common. Studies indicate that 66 percent of adults are considered overweight or obese.Baptist achieves designationThe Baptist Bariatric Center has he .... More »

There is no question we're losing the battle of the bulge. The CDC say two thirds of American adults are now overweight. And some looking for their inner thinness are going to the extreme and choosing surgery to shed the pounds.The laparoscopic gastric band or lap band surgery is the less expensive, less invasive alternative to the gastric bypass surgery. And patients we talked to who opted for the lap band surgery say it wasn't just about shedding the pounds, but prolonging their lives.Sandra Carmichiel, Lisa Richardson and Donna Sch .... More »

Webcast November 7, 2007 6:00 PM EST From PinnacleHealth, Harrisburg, PAHARRISBURG, PA - Weight-loss surgery is the first surgery PinnacleHealth is scheduled to host on the Internet over the next year. On Wednesday, November 7 at 6 pm, Luciano DiMarco, DO, FACOS, medical director of bariatric surgery at PinnacleHealth, will perform the gold standard of weight-loss surgery, Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass, at the PinnacleHealth Community Campus, on www.OR-Live.com. Since 1998, Luciano DiMarco, DO, FACOS, and his partners, Doctors Scot A. Curr .... More »

New research has revealed that deaths due to suicide and coronary heart disease are higher among people who have undergone bariatric surgery for obesity.A study by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh examined data on all Pennsylvania residents who underwent a bariatric operation such as stomach stapling or gastric bypass between 1995 and 2004.They then compared the death rate amongst these patients with those in the general population.They found there were a total of 440 deaths following 16,683 weight loss procedures during th .... More »

A high risk obese patient who loses five to ten per cent of his/her surplus body weight before gastric bypass surgery usually stays in hospital less time and loses weight more quickly after the operation, says an article in Archives of Surgery, a theme issue on bariatric surgery.The authors explain that bariatric surgery is effective for the long-term treatment of patients who are morbidly obese and also have other medical problems. "To that end, older and higher-risk patients with multiple uncontrolled medical problems, such as diabe .... More »

Two studies by a group of researchers at Washington Hospital Center highlight potential postoperative nutritional deficiencies among patients who undergo gastric bypass surgery to treat obesity.Research presented at the 72nd Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology by Dr. Frederick Finelli and Dr. Timothy Koch suggests that a potentially serious condition can emerge after gastric bypass surgery known as small intestinal bacterial overgrowth that has an impact on absorption of vitamins, minerals and micronu .... More »

While gastric bypass surgery has emerged as an effective way to treat severe obesity, there is a dark and dangerous side to the procedure, according to a new report.Dr. Bennet Omalu and colleagues at the University of Pittsburgh looked at nearly 17,000 Pennsylvania residents who underwent bariatric surgery, between 1995 and 2004. What they found was startling. The patients had a higher death rate, including more suicides and heart-disease-related-deaths, than the regular population."It is likely that this continued excess mortality a .... More »

About one in every five people who were candidates for bariatric weight-loss surgery did not receive the recommended psychiatric clearance for the procedure, a U.S. study shows.Psychiatric evaluations are part of the preoperative screening process in most bariatric surgery programs, notes a team from the Rhode Island Hospital and Brown University in Providence.The most common reasons why patients did not receive psychiatric clearance included frequent overeating to cope with stress/emotional distress; a current eating disorder; or unc .... More »

Teens are tipping the scales. There's an epidemic of kids who are so heavy they face serious adult health problems.In two days, Alexis Khan will undergo surgery to help her lose weight."We've tried every diet under the sun," says her mother. So Alexis is trying something much different, a gastric bypass. Because she's only 16 years old, having major surgery is not a decision she can make on her own.Gastric bypass has become an alternative to a growing number of obese teens. Most of the stomach is bypassed, the small pouch remaining al .... More »

By S. Derrickson MooreLAS CRUCES - Russell Clark is less than half the man he used to be, and he and his friends and family couldn't be happier about it.On June 7, 2006, Clark weighed 445 pounds. This month, he weighed in at 195 pounds.Clark isn't sure what his total weight loss is."I fasted for two weeks before I had gastric bypass surgery, so I'm not sure now much I weighed before that," Clark said.He estimates his all-time high was about 470, which puts his loss to date at something between 250 and 275 pounds.During gastric bypass .... More »

MARQUETTE-An educational seminar on extreme obesity and surgical options available for weight reduction will be offered at 6 p.m. Monday in Conference Room 1 at Marquette General Hospital.Dr. Wayne English, bariatric surgeon at MGH, will describe types of weight loss surgeries, focusing on Roux-en-Y gastric bypass. He will explain the requirements for surgery, guidelines patients must follow before and after surgery, and lifestyle changes necessary after surgery.Video conferencing may be available. For information .... More »

Lap-Band also delivers weight-loss; criteria to qualify for procedures can be quite rigorous.By Ashley LutzHAMILTON -The weight-loss procedure of gastric bypass surgery has been prevalent in the media since singer Carnie Wilson famously lost half her body weight in 1999. Since Wilson's success, hundreds of thousands of Americans have opted for gastric-bypass and Lap-Band procedures.The gastric-bypass procedure involves surgically reducing the stomach, allowing food to "bypass" some of the intestine, while the less-invasive Lap-Band pr .... More »