Weighing the options
Surgical alternatives for treating obesity
By some estimates, the economic cost of obesity in the United States is in excess of $200 billion including medical bills as well as weight-loss products/services.

Consequently, there’s even a bigger impact on health. Obesity is now considered a disease and the cause of many serious health issues. For instance, individuals with a BMI of more than 30 face 70% increase in coronary artery disease, 75% increase in stroke, 400% increase in diabetes, and 55% increase in mortality.
Traditionally, morbid obesity (a BMI greater than 40) has been treated with diet and exercise. Yet studies indicate that a combination of diet and exercise yield and average of 10 percent loss of excess body weight and is ineffective in the long-term as less than 5 percent see any significant weight loss.

Surgery for obesity has been shown to be effective yet dangerous and highly invasive.

In the past, the most common option for surgery was gastric bypass. While studies indicate that gastric bypass does result in initial weight loss, there are some significant disadvantages. Gastric bypass requires stomach cutting and stapling as well as a re-routing of the intestines. Sometimes the bypassing of the portion of the digestive tract can result in nutritional deficiencies. Moreover, gastric bypass is non-adjustable and extremely difficult to reverse.
Fortunately, there is a new and more effective surgical procedure for obesity called gastric banding. The gastric banding procedure involves the placement of a band, referred to as a LAP-BAND, around the upper part of the stomach. As a result a small pouch is created so the stomach holds less food. Therefore, patients feel full faster and longer.

The gastric band device is introduced through tiny (1cm) incisions in the abdomen and is placed around the upper part of the stomach. The resulting pouch (or the "new stomach") dramatically reduces the functional capacity of the stomach. The band has a balloon from the inside that is adjustable and can reduce stoma size, thus prolonging the period of fullness.

This opening (stoma) between the two parts of the stomach can easily be decreased or increased, by injecting or removing saline from the band. The band is connected by a tube to a reservoir placed beneath the skin during surgery.
The band can be removed at any time making the procedure fully reversible.
Gastric banding has some significant advantages over the traditional gastric bypass. There’s a gradual, more natural and healthier weight loss which can be customized by patients. With gastric banding there’s a prolonged sense of fullness after small meals. And, gastric banding is the only weight loss surgery that provides a long-term tool to keep the weight off.

The estimated weight loss for gastric banding is approximately 40 - 50 percent of one's excess weight to be achieved over 2 years.

Other advantages of gastric banding include the lower mortality and complication rate when compared to gastric bypass. It’s less invasive since there’s no stapling, cutting or intestinal rerouting. Gastric banding is adjustable, reversible and there’s a very low risk for malnutrition. And, the band can be removed if necessary.

Gastric banding is now available locally at The Healing Center at Camden-Clark Memorial Hospital Center. For more information, contact The Healing Center at 304-420-7155.