Results tagged “obesity surgery” from Weight Loss & Nutrition News

Weight loss surgery--more specifically referred to as bariatric surgery and gastric bypass surgery --has been the big buzz word in treating morbidly obese adults for several years now. But can it help--or would it harm--severely overweight teens?

Although one of these popular procedures, gastric banding -- or “lap banding,” as it is commonly known-- has been an accepted practice in controlling weight in obese adults since 2001, the Food and Drug Administration has been reluctant to approve it for the treatment of childhood obesity.

Jan. 11, 2007 -- Weight loss surgery is soaring in the U.S., especially among baby boomers and women, a government report shows.

Weight loss, or bariatric, surgery is for morbidly obese people and those who are obese with serious medical conditions related to their weight. Perhaps the best known type of this surgery is gastric bypass surgery.

The new report shows bariatric surgery was nine times more common in 2004 than in 1998 in the U.S.

Controversial guidelines that could see children offered weight loss surgery have been published by the Government's health watchdog.

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) report is the first of its kind from the body aimed at tackling the obesity crisis in England and Wales.

The guidance focuses on the prevention and treatment of obesity in adults and children and will be sent to NHS professionals, schools, local authorities, employers and town planners. Nice said there was a need "for urgent action" to stem the rising tide of obesity.

One day in September a surgeon cut Andre Corbeil from hip to hip and removed seven kilograms of skin.

It wasn’t a tummy tuck. It was a post-bariatric panniculectomy, a procedure to remove folds of excess skin and flabby tissue Corbeil was left with after he lost half his weight following bariatric, or “stomach-stapling”, surgery.

Bariatric surgery may be life transforming, but it transforms people only halfway. Once the weight comes off, people are left with drooping, deflated bellies, chests, breasts, legs, thighs, arms, faces, necks and buttocks.

CHICAGO, Nov 13 (Reuters) - The risk of complications such as bleeding and infection in patients undergoing an increasingly popular weight-loss surgery varies drastically based on which hospital performs it, a large study released on Monday found.

The study of 86,520 procedures found that patients undergoing so-called bariatric surgery at a highly-rated hospital are 66 percent less likely to suffer from a complication, including bleeding, pneumonia, and heart problems, than at a poorly-rated hospital.

The poll comes as obese Americans - about one-third of the population -- are increasingly turning to bariatric surgery to shed weight. The number of surgeries has quadrupled since 2000, reaching 171,000 in 2005, according to the American Society of Bariatric Surgery.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – NewHope Bariatrics, a startup focused on tackling the exploding problem of obesity in the United States, has $18.5 million in new financing to serve as a war chest.

NewHope has plenty of opportunity for growth, too. The latest statistics from the federal government estimate that more than 60 percent of all adults are overweight, and of those more than 30 percent are obese.

The company, which was founded by two former top officials at MedCath in 2005, plans to use the funds to open surgery centers that will offer treatment for obesity.

NewHope Bariatrics will focus on a type of surgery known as LapBand. The procedure involves the use of gatric bands.

Saint James Hospital has announced the first implantation of a gastric band in Malta, during an operation performed at St James Hospital on 5 October.

This procedure is the latest surgical treatment to help morbidly obese patients achieve sustained weight loss, resulting in reduced mortality and an improved quality of life.

Obesity, defined as a disease of excess fat storage sufficient to harm health, is now recognised as a global public health problem, with an estimated 135 million people in Europe alone classified as obese (six million of these are classified as morbidly obese). It is now the second-highest preventable cause of death, after smoking. Obesity is a complex disorder, not solely caused by over-eating. Genetic, environmental, physiological, and physical factors can all predispose a person to excessive weight gain.

By Debra Sherman, Reuters, 13 Oct 2006

CLEVELAND (Reuters) - Stomach-stapling surgery to combat obesity may be done in the future with a tube inserted through the mouth, making the procedure safer than using an incision and opening the way for more people to undergo it, doctors say.

Doctors have performed about 1 million bariatric surgeries worldwide, in which the stomach is stapled to make it smaller so people eat less, and experts say it's the best method to lose weight and keep it off.

Doing the surgery without incisions will make it a lower-risk, lower-cost proposition and may be applicable to patients who are less obese than those who are currently considered for surgery, said Dr. Philip Schauer, head of bariatric surgery at the Cleveland Clinic, which is hosting a three-day meeting on obesity.

by Kim Dixon and Debra Sherman, Reuters, 12 Oct 2006

CLEVELAND, Ohio (Reuters) - The new head of Johnson & Johnson's surgical-device unit is campaigning to convince employers to cover an increasingly popular but pricey surgery for obesity.

Nearly one-third of the U.S. adult population is obese and patients are lining up for the surgery, but U.S. employers are having trouble swallowing the minimum $25,000 price tag. The cost can double if complications emerge after surgery.

TUESDAY, Oct. 10 (HealthDay News) -- Obesity increases the risk that patients will suffer complications during spinal surgery, U.S. researchers report.

In the study, a team from Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia reviewed 332 cases of thoracic and lumbar spinal surgery for routine degenerative conditions.

Of the patients in the study, 71 percent were overweight, including 39 percent who were obese.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Obese individuals who undergo stomach surgery may not properly absorb certain medications and nutrients from vitamins, minerals and dietary supplements afterwards, a review of published studies suggests.

"Patients should always inform all of their healthcare professionals, including pharmacists and other physicians, that they have undergone bariatric (stomach) surgery and ask them if their medications, vitamins, minerals, or dietary supplements will be properly absorbed," advises Dr. Kelly M. Smith of the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy in Lexington.