Bariatric surgery: what is it, procedure, prices and benefits

Without a doubt, the lifestyle and food is taking its toll on the human being. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that obesity has almost tripled globally since 1975. This translates into 1.9 billion overweight adults and 65 million obese people, that is, 13% of the entire population.

Overweight and obesity not only affect the individual in an aesthetic way, as they have also been correlated with rapid cellular aging, greater risk of heart disease and even more likely to develop cancers such as colorectal (obese people are 30% more likely to suffer it).

Bariatric surgery is a term that refers to the set of surgical procedures used to address the clinical picture caused by obesity. In 2008, more than 350,000 operations of this nature were performed, which is why it is considered a surgical variant on the rise. If you want to know all the essential information about bariatric surgery, read on.

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What is bariatric surgery?

As we have already advanced in previous lines, today we are facing a series of interventions that seek to make changes in the physiology of the digestive system to help the patient lose weight. Despite their relative effectiveness, professional portals warn us that they are very invasive procedures, with potentially serious risks and side effects.

Also, bariatric surgery is not a panacea. The patient must restructure his relationship with food through psychological support, as some research shows that 20-87% of people can regain weight after two years of having been operated. According to the Mayo Clinic, this procedure is applied to avoid or reduce the effects of the following cases:

• Heart disease, stroke or predisposition to them.
• Faced with potentially fatal high blood pressure.
• To avoid non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
• To reduce / avoid sleep apnea.
• To avoid the appearance of type II diabetes. Being overweight and obesity dramatically increases the likelihood of it manifesting itself.

In general, these types of interventions are recommended in people with a Body Mass Index (BMI) greater than 40, or in cases between 30-40 who present problems derived from their obesity condition. Even so, this is usually always the last professional option unless the patient's life is in danger: first it is necessary to go through conventional diets, exercise and extensive psychological help. We emphasize: a bariatric surgery is not the solution if the individual mind and routine are not also restructured.

How is your procedure?

There are various techniques included in this type of surgery, although 4 are the most common: adjustable gastric band, vertical gastrectomy, gastric bypass and biliopancreatic diversion. The gastric bypass is the most used of all, since it is estimated that it corresponds to 49% of interventions of this nature. It is followed by the gastric band, which occupies the remaining 42% of patients. Next, we present you the procedure in general terms of the most common interventions.

1. Gastric bypass

This intervention is based on reduce stomach capacity to 20-50 cubic centimeters by creating a small sac in the stomach, which will connect directly to the small intestine (hence the name of Bypass). Thus, the food eaten will bypass much of the stomach and the first section of the small intestine during digestion.

With much less stomach area available (only 60% is used for food absorption), the patient will feel full much sooner and simply will not be able to consume as much food. Depending on the habits and commitment of the person, after this surgery the patient can lose up to 75% of their overweight after one year.

In general, this procedure usually takes a few hours, but the recovery is extremely slow and expensive. During the first days after the operation, only the intake of liquid food or made from puree and you will not be able to return to a completely normal diet for a long later. In addition, it is common for the patient to feel pain, fatigue, weakness, dry skin, hair loss, cold and other events related to drastic weight loss.

2. Gastric band

Consists of the placement of an adjustable ring at the entrance to the stomach, whose setting determines the ingestion capacity. This helps the patient feel full more quickly and eat less. As simple as it may seem, this procedure also requires going through the operating room and making several abdominal incisions for the placement of the band.

Once installed in the patient, the gastric band will not inflate until 4-6 weeks after the operation, thus effectively constricting the stomach. Again, the recovery process is slow and expensive, because during the first 2 weeks after the procedure, the intake of anything other than liquid is not contemplated. Some people literally feel that with two drinks of water they are already full.

After surgery, the weight loss is slow but steady. In addition, the doctor can make adjustments to the band if the patient is not losing weight as expected or if they have any health problems related to it. In general, the effective weight loss is contemplated for up to 3 years.

3. Other procedures

Although we have shown you the two procedures that dominate the world of bariatric surgeries, there are also many others. Briefly, we tell you what some of them consist of:

• Vertical gastrectomy- Literally a vertical section of the stomach is cut to reduce its size. Its volume decreases by 80%.
• Plicated tubular gastroplasty: As unpleasant as it may sound, the stomach is “sewn” inwards, thus reducing its capacity.
• Duodenal switch: very similar to bypass, only in this case the connection is made in the duodenum, which only allows 50% of its use for the absorption of food.
• Biliopancreatic diversion: the food absorption surface of the small intestine is further reduced, in this case to 40%.

Risks and price

Bariatric surgery, in all the senses shown, it is not conceived without possible complications. During the process, excessive bleeding, infections, adverse reactions to the anesthesia, blood clots, breathing problems and even death (although it is very little frequent).

After the operation, other long-term complications may appear in the patient: gallstones, hernias, intestinal obstruction, ulcers, vomiting, gastric reflux, hypoglycemia and many other events more. For all these reasons, the person who has undergone the procedure must be monitored by medical specialists for a long period of time on a medical, dietary and emotional level.

We do not intend to scare people who are considering bariatric surgery, but it is necessary to expose your possible risks to emphasize that, once again, we are facing quite invasive procedures that should not be taken at the light. Undergoing surgery should always be the last option when dealing with eating disorders, unless the patient is at immediate risk.

As for the price, this will vary widely depending on the type of procedure to be followed. Even so, the average price of a gastric bypass in many places is around 12,000 euros, while a gastric band can be obtained for about 7,800 euros. We are facing very high prices, but in many cases the payment can be divided into monthly installments that are much easier on the pocket.

Resume

As you may have seen in these lines, it is difficult to recommend bariatric surgery to any patient who has not already tried by all possible means to lose weight. The problem of obesity is as emotional as it is physical and, if it is not treated on a psychological level, relapse after a long and painful recovery process is more than likely.

If you're considering bariatric surgery, speak up. Talk to your psychologist, talk to your trusted doctor, your nutritionist, your family and any important person in your environment. Weigh all the options well and do not consider going through the operating room until you have exhausted any previous route of action.

Bibliographic references

• Gastric Bypass, mayoclinic.org. Picked up on November 1 in https://www.mayoclinic.org/es-es/tests-procedures/gastric-bypass-surgery/about/pac-20385189
• Bariatric Surgery, Mayoclinic.org. Picked up on December 1 in https://www.mayoclinic.org/es-es/tests-procedures/bariatric-surgery/about/pac-20394258
• Bariatric surgery, sanitas.es. Picked up on December 1 in https://www.sanitas.es/sanitas/seguros/es/particulares/biblioteca-de-salud/dieta-alimentacion/adelgazar-sobrepeso/cirugia-bariatrica-obesidad.html
• Gastric Band Surgery, cigna.com. Picked up on December 1 in https://www.cigna.com/individuals-families/health-wellness/hw-en-espanol/temas-de-salud/ciruga-de-colocacion-de-banda-gastrica-ajustable-ae1188
• Maluenda, G. F. (2012). Bariatric surgery. Las Condes Clinical Medical Journal, 23 (2), 180-188.
• Obesity, World Health Organization (WHO). Picked up on December 1 in https://www.who.int/es/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/obesity-and-overweight
• What is Bariatric Surgery, stanfordschildren.org. Picked up on December 1 in https://www.stanfordchildrens.org/es/service/bariatric-surgery/what