Gastric bypass tops among weight loss procedures, report says

Gastric Bypass Better Than Lap-Band

Gastric bypass surgery is more dependable than other weight loss procedure including Lap-Band, U.S. researchers said in a report published in this month's issue of the Archives of Surgery.

The stomach-stapling procedure was also shown to be better in preventing or reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes. It involves skipping a small section of the intestine so that you get full faster.

Lap-bands, meanwhile, involves using a band, to wrap around the stomach so that the person feels full quickly and therefore discourages eating more food. Yet another type of weight loss surgical intervention called sleeve gastrectomy involves the removal of a section of the stomach to limit food capacity.

The study by the team of Dr. Guilherme M. Campos compared 100 patients who underwent gastric bypass surgery and 100 others who preferred lap-banding. All 200 of the participants were considered morbidly obese. Each group had 34 members who were diabetic. The researchers noted how the two procedures affected diabetes and weight loss goals.

Patients who underwent gastric bypass shed 64 percent of excess weight on average, while those who received lap-bands lost 36 percent. In addition, 75 percent of the group who had gastric bypass reported improvement in their diabetes compared to half in the lap-band cohort.

Risks of stomach surgeries regardless of type include bleeding, clots, infection, hernias and malnutrition. About ten percent of those who undergo weight loss surgery eventually regain their weight before surgery.

Patients are urged to choose experienced surgeons when they go for any type of weight loss surgery. Compared to lap-banding, there is often more technical skills and higher risk of complications involved in gastric bypass surgery.

Posted by George Daniels on Tuesday February 22 2011, 4:02 AM EDT. Ref: Business Week. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, Health. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0