<p>My nephew, a senior in high school and 100 pounds overweight is set to have gastric bypass soon. I am trying to educate myself about the procedure, risks, recovery and success rates. Does anyone have experience with this, especially with teens?</p>
<p>Why not try a lap band first? Less invasive, less chance of complications, adjustable. and reversible.</p>
<p>I wish they would consider lap band but are set on the bypass. I am fearful that they are making a rash decision and looking for a quick fix. Since he is 18, he can sign the consent form.</p>
<p>Here is a recent review on types of bariatric surgery and their risks and benefits, [Bariatric</a> surgery versus non-surgical treatment for obesity: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials](<a href=“http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3806364/]Bariatric”>Bariatric surgery versus non-surgical treatment for obesity: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials - PMC)</p>
<p>And this article describes peri operative safety of the procedures in teens mostly gastric bypass and gastric sleeve because lap band isn’t approved for adolescents). [JAMA</a> Network | JAMA Pediatrics | Perioperative Outcomes of Adolescents Undergoing Bariatric Surgery: The Teen?Longitudinal Assessment of Bariatric Surgery (Teen-LABS) Study](<a href=“http://archpedi.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1765638]JAMA”>http://archpedi.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1765638)</p>
<p>And here is a fact sheet for patients from the National Institutes of Health.
[WIN</a> - Publication - Bariatric Surgery for Severe Obesity](<a href=“http://win.niddk.nih.gov/publications/gastric.htm]WIN”>http://win.niddk.nih.gov/publications/gastric.htm)</p>
<p>Hope this helps,</p>
<p>Mom0f3, do you know any long-term studies of the results of bariatric surgery? What are the results five or ten years after the surgery?</p>
<p>This is a quick fix that leads to a lifetime of problems. Permanent nutritional deficiencies requiring years of treatment, risks of hernias, adhesions, and bowel obstructions. These surgeries are the gifts that keeps on giving. A few people do well for life but most have continuing issues, including continued OBESITY!</p>
<p>frugaldoctor, have you got studies comparing people who got bariatric surgery with similar people who didn’t? The people with the bariatric surgery may have all the complications that you list, but don’t people who are equally obese have many complications as well?</p>
<p>I don’t see the point of comparing real people who have bariatric surgery to imaginary people who don’t have bariatric surgery but who lose weight and keep it off.</p>
<p>Ya know…</p>
<p>If this is a nephew and he and his parents want to do this…and you aren’t a medical professional…I’d keep my mouth shut if I were you. I doubt he or his parents will welcome your advice. I think all you’ll do is damage your relationship with them.</p>
<p>Maybe you have a much better relationship with your sibs than I have/had with mine, but I usually find that if I offer a different opinion on something they have decided to do it doesn’t change a thing and just antagonizes them.</p>
<p>Cardinal Fang, here is a pretty good study comparing people who did vs those who did not have gastric bypass at 6 years: [Health</a> benefits of gastric bypass surge - PubMed Mobile](<a href=“Health benefits of gastric bypass surgery after 6 years - PubMed”>Health benefits of gastric bypass surgery after 6 years - PubMed). </p>
<p>The Swedish Obese Subjects study has even longer term data (more than 15 years) but most of those people had a type of procedure that is no longer done.</p>
<p>So after six years, the people who had the bariatric surgery were dramatically better off than the control group. They lost on average 27% of their body weight, whereas the control group lost none. Three-quarters of them were able to maintain their weight loss after 6 years. Their diabetes and heart results were way better than the control group.</p>
<p>Imaginary obese people can lose weight and keep it off without surgery. Real, living obese people don’t seem to be able to.</p>
<p>Ten days after receiving gastric bypass surgery my best friend’s sister died from sepsis. I was beside myself when my own sister elected to have the surgery several years later. But she made it very clear to the family that she could not get control of her weight and that she would rather be dead than continue living obese.
There was nothing easy about the process. She had to go through extensive physical and psychological testing. She also had to go on a protein shake diet for about a month and lose a prescribed amount of weight to show her ability to comply with a rigorous protocol. The surgery is extensive and and it’s less pleasant effects persist 8 years later.
My sister did lose nearly 200 pounds. But she would likely crown anyone who said she took the easy way out. After the surgery she had to be vigilant about what she ate, how she ate it, (heavily macerated) and had to make sure meals were carefully spaced or she would throw up or be subject to other ugly GI distress. She has described the bypass as a tool with strict enforcements.
After about 6 years and 3 babies she became less vigilant and eventually much of her weight returned, as the stomach pouch does stretch. Now she is working it off through very strict calorie reduction and mild exercise.
I wish your nephew the best. The weight loss changed my sister’s life. Before the surgery she was in her thirties, living with our parents in a job she had maxed out in. After she got the weight off she had the confidence to take a job a thousand miles away from home where she was wildly successful. She met her husband there and now has 3 little boys. And even with regaining the weight, she knows that she got it off before, so she had the confidence to retake control knowing she can be successful. But nothing about the surgery was easy, and unless the patient is vigilant forever the weight will come back…just like for the rest of us.</p>
<p>Jonri,
I am not interested in providing advice. Not my place to do that. I am just looking for information specific to teens and gastric bypass and I thank those of you who have provided it. I hope this works for him as he has some medical concerns. It just worries me that he is making such a life altering decision at such a young age and with only a few months of counseling.</p>
<p>Laketime, I can only imagine how worried you were when your sister decided to undergo the procedure. It sounds like the surgery and the results gave her self confidence and self esteem. Both are things my nephew lack. Thanks for sharing your experiences.</p>
<p>I had the gastric sleeve surgery in June. I’m down about 60 pounds. The lap band is probably the WORST of these surgeries and has a lot of side effects (can breach into the stomach years after the surgery) and is not as ‘reversible’ as you are led to believe, lap band surgeries tend to need 2nd surgeries later after the lap band has breached into the stomach and all the scar tissue needs cleaning out. I chose the gastric sleeve because the gastric bypass surgery basically creeped me out and I didn’t want my intestines rerouted plus that stomach is still just there. So I basically have just a smaller stomach (like about the size of a banana and shaped like one too. Check out the website obesityhelp.com for support and to educate yourself about the types of weight loss surgery. I can now do 30 minutes on a treadmill easily (because I can breathe).</p>
<p>it’s not the easy way out for sure, like the poster said, lots of pre surgery physical and psychological requirements. I think it’s fine for a 16 year old that is morbidly obese (and 100 pounds overweight is morbidly obese).</p>
<p>Gastric sleeve also does not have the nutritional malabsorption issues that the gastric bypass has (so faster weight loss for gastric bypass because of the malabsorption plus restriction, malabsorption also includes calories) but fewer nutritional side effects for the gastric sleeve (I have not had, for example, any hair loss).</p>
<p>My mid-20s step-daughter had gastric sleeve surgery a year ago. It was very tough going for several months after surgery and she will always have to be very careful about what she eats. It’s practically a full-time job to manage. She did experience some hair loss but it’s coming back. BUT, she has lost 100 pounds, many of her medical issues have gone away, and she’s so much happier with herself than she has ever been. It’s NOT the easy way out despite what people think but for many people, it’s a lifesaver.</p>
<p>Can those of you with experience in this area explain why the surgery, which sounds very painful, difficult, and risky, preferable to losing weight over a year or so through diet, exercise, and and behavior modification therapy? What is the rationale for the surgery over non-surgical methods of weight loss? I am not trying to critique but just to understand.</p>
<p>My advice is the result of my observation of over 3000 laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gatric bypass surgeries performed at my hospital before the hospital chose to close the program. It also includes the close to 1000 surgeries performed at my previous hospital before they closed that program. If your outcome is weight loss and obesity related diseases, I agree that the surgery wins and is a reasonable choice when all else fails. But the surgery is not without serious consequences that include death, nutritional deficiency, hernias, etc. The surgeons at my hospital did a great job with patient selection, testing, and were very skilled. In fact, our facility provided training for other surgeons and our surgeons traveled the national lecture circuit. But the bad outcomes were tragic. Even a small minority of patients revolved through our ER with issues.</p>
<p>So if you have other opportunities to lose weight such as dieting and exercise, I would highly recommend that a serious attempt is taken because gatric bypass surgery is a miracle cure for some a bane for others.</p>
<p>“What is the rationale for the surgery over non-surgical methods of weight loss?”</p>
<p>Because morbidly obese people almost never lose the weight and keep it off for 3+ years. It’s so unusual that there’s an ongoing attempt to study these outlier folks – who are so rare that the researchers seek folks who’ve kept 30+ pounds off for ONE year. [National</a> Weight Control Registry](<a href=“http://www.nwcr.ws/]National”>http://www.nwcr.ws/)</p>
<p>A majority of folks who have surgery have significant weight loss even after 5+ years.</p>