Is Surgical Weight Loss Right For You?

Bethesda Memorial Hospital is proud to offer a program for gastric-bypass, LAP-BAND® System and gastric sleeve surgery to support the unique needs of the clinically obese patient.

"Weight Loss surgery is about restoring people's health and well being, it's not a cosmetic procedure," comments surgeon Miguel Lopez-Viego, M.D., Medical Director of the Bethesda Center for Surgical Weight Reduction. "It should be reserved for those who have been unsuccessful with other weight loss methods."

When other medically supervised methods have failed, surgery offers the best option of long-term weight control for those with clinically severe obesity. Surgery is just the first step in helping patients get back on the road to good health. In order to get down to a healthy weight, patients must adjust their eating habits and exercise patterns. The Bethesda Center for Surgical Weight Reduction employs a multi-disciplinary approach assisting patients before, during and after their gastric bypass surgery. From pre-operative education to nutritional counseling and ongoing support groups, our patients have easy access to our healthcare professionals seven days a week.

Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass

One of the most popular and successful surgical approaches is the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, which is a minimally invasive procedure, performed with small video cameras called laparoscopes. In gastric bypass surgery, the stomach is reduced in size so that only a small amount of food can be eaten at one time. Patients lose weight because this small pouch restricts the amount of food that can be eaten comfortably. This method uses small incisions, which result in less pain, reduced risk of infections and a faster recovery for the patient. Gastric-bypass surgery has been endorsed by a 1991 consensus panel of the National Institutes of Health as an effective means of inducing significant long-term weight loss for the vast majority of patients with clinically severe obesity.

LAP-BAND® Adjustable Gastric Banding System

The LAP-BAND® Adjustable Gastric Banding System was designed to help you lose excess body weight. It uses a process called laparoscopic banding. This process is the least invasive way to use surgery to reduce the amount of food your stomach can hold. The LAP-BAND® System is an innovative procedure using an adjustable surgical band to reduce stomach size. It is adjustable and reversible and it requires a minimum of recovery time.

Sleeve Gastrectomy

Sleeve gastrectomy is a surgical weight - loss procedure in which the left side of the stomach is removed reducing it to about 35% of its original size. The open edges are then attached together to form a sleeve or tube with a banana shape. The procedure permanently reduces the size of the stomach. The procedure is performed laparoscopically and is not reversible. Weight loss is generated solely through gastric restriction (reduced stomach volume). The stomach that remains is shaped like a very slim banana and measures from 1-5 ounces (30-150cc), depending on the surgeon performing the procedure. The nerves to the stomach and the outlet valve (pylorus) remain intact with the idea of preserving the functions of the stomach while drastically reducing the volume. There is no intestinal bypass with this procedure, only stomach reduction. The lack of an intestinal bypass avoids potentially costly, long-term complications such as marginal ulcers, vitamin deficiencies and intestinal obstructions.

The medical and emotional benefits of weight loss surgery procedures begin almost immediately after surgery, and the cosmetic benefits follow shortly thereafter.

Attend a free lecture held the first Thursday of each month, 6:30 p.m., in the Clayton Conference Center at Bethesda Memorial Hospital, presented by Miguel Lopez-Viego. Call (561) 737-7733, extension 4688 or send an e-mail to Suzanne.Schoenrock@bethesdahealthcare.com.