Infographics: Weight Loss Surgery Comparison*
Weight Loss Surgery: Which One to Go For?
Often a patient gets puzzled over the variety of weight loss surgeries available, therefore it is good to know what are the differences and similarities of surgeries in order to get a broader picture. The main surgeries performed worldwide are Gastric Bypass Roux-en-Y (GBR), Gastric Band and Gastric Sleeve.
Surgery time and hospitalization
Firstly, there is a difference in time. It takes approximately 1.30 hour to perform Gastric Bypass, while 40 minutes for Gastric Band and 2 hours for Gastric Sleeve. Hospitalization also differs slightly. Usually a patient is advised to stay for 2 days after Gastric Bypass, 1 day after Gastric Band and 3 days after Gastric Sleeve. However, bear in mind that the surgery time and hospital stay may vary due to a number of reasons such as hospital policy or surgeon approach.
Advantages and possible disadvantages
- Gastric Bypass shows greater weight loss than after band.
- It is most commonly done and most researched surgery.
- One of the greatest advantages of Gastric Sleeve is that the digestive tract is not changed, therefore there is no risk of malnutrition or dumping syndrome.
- Gastric Band is reversible surgery and least invasive, therefore the recovery is fast.
- Weight loss surgeries have shown outstanding results not only in tackling weight issues but also improving or even resolving serious health conditions. For instance, a recent study shows that after the Gastric Bypass 84% percent of patients resolved diabetes II, 48% after Gastric Band and 72% after Gastric Sleeve.
- Gastric surgeries also alleviate hypertension. 75% resolved hypertension after Gastric Bypass, 55% after Gastric Band and 48% after Gastric Sleeve. All three surgeries also showed improvement of sleep apnea, asthma, arthritis and reflux.
- However, as any surgical intervention, weight loss surgeries carry a number of possible disadvantages. For instance, a person may suffer from insufficient nutrition, risk of dumping syndrome and anastomotic leakage after Gastric Bypass.
- On the other hand, after Gastric Band the lowest weight loss is recorded.
- There is also a need for constant band adjustment and a risk of band slippage.
- After Gastric Sleeve, a person may need a revision surgery since there is a risk of staple line break. There is little data on long term results since it is relatively new procedure.
Who qualify for gastric surgery?
Usually, a person whose BMI ranges from 35 is a suitable candidate for gastric surgery. However, if a person has diabetes II then from 30 BMI. In general weight loss surgery is performed to a person ho has obesity related disorders negatively impacting his health, is in good psychological state and did not manage to lose weight in any other ways.
So how much weight do you loose?
After gastric bypass, in 6 months a person loses approximately around 54%, in 1 year – 72%, after 2 years – 75 % and after 3 years – 72%. After gastric band accordingly, 35%, 45%, 56% and 58%. After gastric sleeve – 46%, 56%, 68% and 75%.
Obesity is a growing concern worldwide. For instance, in UK 23 % of population was obese in 2009 and 34% in US. In UK 1 weight loss surgery per 10,000 residents is performed, while in US 7 surgeries. NHS statistics show that the most popular gastric surgery performed in UK in 2010, was Gastric Bypass, making 58% percent of all surgeries, while gastric band stood at 19% and other 23%.
Of course, before deciding which gastric surgery to have you should consult your doctor and make a decision only after a through research.
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