The Sleeve Gastrectomy Is A Very Popular Option
The gastric sleeve, which is frequently also called the vertical sleeve gastrectomy or merely the sleeve gastrectomy, has been carried out for several years and bariatric surgeons frequently do the procedure as the first procedure in a two part weight loss process.
For patients who are severely obese with a BMI of more than 60 conventional gastric bypass surgery, like the roux-en-y, carries unacceptably high risks as a result of which the gastric sleeve is done as this operation can usually be performed laparoscopically with a minimum of risk. Then, as soon as you have lost enough weight, a further procedure such as classical gastric bypass surgery can be performed.
In recent years however the view of the gastric sleeve has changed and it is now being used more and more as a stand-alone procedure that can by itself produce results which are similar to those experienced with lap band surgery.
For those people who are worried about lap band surgery because of concerns about having a foreign body implanted into their abdominal cavity, the sleeve gastrectomy can be an appealing choice. Similarly, it also presents an option for those patients who are worried about potential long-term side effects of classical gastric bypass surgery like anemia, intestinal obstruction, ulcers and vitamin and protein deficiency to name only some.
One other group of individuals for whom the gastric sleeve can be a life-saver are those people who have an existing medical condition which rules out traditional obesity surgery. Patients for example with Crohn's disease, anemia, Lupus and a whole range of other conditions.
The vertical sleeve gastrectomy is a restrictive as opposed to a malabsorption procedure which results in weight loss by restricting how much you can eat. As a restrictive type of surgery weight loss is less rapid than it would be in the case of bypass surgery however you also avoid several of the side effects and complications associated with bypass surgery. In spite of the fact that there is no long-term data available yet for the sleeve gastrectomy as a stand-alone operation initial studies suggest that high BMI individuals (with a BMI of 50 to 60) should expect to lose around half of their excess weight in the first year after surgery. This figure increases to over two-thirds of excess weight for lower BMI individuals (with a BMI of 30 to 40).
In obesity surgery terms the gastric sleeve fits between the gastric band and the gastric bypass and is generally a good choice for people whose overall health makes gastric bypass surgery not recommended and for many people it can result in sufficient weight loss to make a very significant difference to their general state of health and lifestyle.
For patients who are severely obese with a BMI of more than 60 conventional gastric bypass surgery, like the roux-en-y, carries unacceptably high risks as a result of which the gastric sleeve is done as this operation can usually be performed laparoscopically with a minimum of risk. Then, as soon as you have lost enough weight, a further procedure such as classical gastric bypass surgery can be performed.
In recent years however the view of the gastric sleeve has changed and it is now being used more and more as a stand-alone procedure that can by itself produce results which are similar to those experienced with lap band surgery.
For those people who are worried about lap band surgery because of concerns about having a foreign body implanted into their abdominal cavity, the sleeve gastrectomy can be an appealing choice. Similarly, it also presents an option for those patients who are worried about potential long-term side effects of classical gastric bypass surgery like anemia, intestinal obstruction, ulcers and vitamin and protein deficiency to name only some.
One other group of individuals for whom the gastric sleeve can be a life-saver are those people who have an existing medical condition which rules out traditional obesity surgery. Patients for example with Crohn's disease, anemia, Lupus and a whole range of other conditions.
The vertical sleeve gastrectomy is a restrictive as opposed to a malabsorption procedure which results in weight loss by restricting how much you can eat. As a restrictive type of surgery weight loss is less rapid than it would be in the case of bypass surgery however you also avoid several of the side effects and complications associated with bypass surgery. In spite of the fact that there is no long-term data available yet for the sleeve gastrectomy as a stand-alone operation initial studies suggest that high BMI individuals (with a BMI of 50 to 60) should expect to lose around half of their excess weight in the first year after surgery. This figure increases to over two-thirds of excess weight for lower BMI individuals (with a BMI of 30 to 40).
In obesity surgery terms the gastric sleeve fits between the gastric band and the gastric bypass and is generally a good choice for people whose overall health makes gastric bypass surgery not recommended and for many people it can result in sufficient weight loss to make a very significant difference to their general state of health and lifestyle.
