Gastric bypass achieves its effects by creating a very small stomach pouch from which the rest of the stomach is permanently divided and separated. The treatment works by reducing food intake, and reducing the feeling of hunger.

The sleeve gastrectomy is a surgical procedure for weight loss that is particularly suited to those patients at highest risk for surgery, either because of their medical co-morbidities or their weight. This operation can be performed with traditional open techniques or with minimally invasive laparoscopy.

Adjustable Gastric Banding is a technique for pure restrictive weight loss surgery. There is no malabsorptive component to the procedure, and weight loss is achieved by careful planning with the reduction in calories consumed.

Fat tissue in our bodies is necessary, however when we have too much body fat being stored within us the result obesity. The U.S. and international governments, health organizations, researchers, and medical professionals around the world consider obesity a serious medical disease. It is not a sign of a person being out of control. Obesity affects over 30% of the adult American population. Other contributing factors to obesity are genetics, behavioral, and environmental factors.

Clinically severe obesity has debilitating long-term effects and it is the second leading cause of unnecessary deaths. Obesity is a chronic disease that increases a person’s risk of developing other medical conditions such as hypertension, type II diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and certain types of cancer. Obesity can also be associated with other medical conditions such as shortness of breath, sleep apnea, irregular menstruation or infertility, gallbladder disease (gallstones), and osteoarthritis.

Obesity also affects us socially and psychologically. Many people suffer social effects such as self-consciousness and discomfort in social situations, limitations in social activities because of limited mobility, frustration, and discrimination. Psychologically, obesity may cause depression, negative body image, despair, and low self-esteem.

Your bathroom scale is not the best way to determine if you are overweight or obese. Other measurements can help you find out more about your body composition. Body Mass Index or BMI is a number calculated based on both your height and weight. BMI is calculated by dividing a person’s body weight in kilograms by their height in squared meters. This number can be misleading if you are very muscular but it gives a reasonable assessment of total body fat for the general population.

In order to qualify for surgery, a person must have a BMI of 40 (about 100 lbs. over ideal body weight), or BMI between 35 and 40 with a qualifying co-morbid condition such as high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, or obstructive sleep apnea.

Obesity causes many serious medical conditions and at least 300,000 deaths in the U.S. each year. Researchers have associated obesity to more than 30 medical conditions. Statistically speaking, there is a low chance of losing and maintaining a significant weight loss without surgical intervention. Less than 5% of people who participate in non-surgical weight loss programs lose a significant amount of weight and maintain that weight loss for a long period of time. The relatively low risk and complications of the weight loss surgery procedures, versus not having surgery, make it a good alternative for some patients.

Most patients lose about 75% of their excess body weight with gastric bypass surgery (50% with Lap-Band®) and maintain most of that weight loss long-term. Most co-morbid conditions are greatly alleviated or even resolved after significant weight loss. Bariatric surgery is a well-established method for long-term weight control for people with severe obesity.