subject: Possible Risks of Weight Loss Surgery [print this page] Possible Risks of Weight Loss Surgery Possible Risks of Weight Loss Surgery
Since obesity has become such a widespread problem worldwide, weight loss surgery has become both more effective in its approaches and better known to the public. Stomach stapling (gastric bypass surgery) began in the 1980s and more ways have been developed of modifying the digestive system so as to prevent a person from over-eating.
The newer procedures use banding (tying off part of the stomach so that it holds less food) and the banding devices are adjustable after surgery is completed. This method involves no removal of intestines.
With all Surgeries, There is Risk
Any time the skin is incised, there is a risk of infection, since one of the skin's functions is to protect the body's interior from bacteria and other infection-causing parasites. With incisions, there is the risk of too much bleeding should the incision reopen. Any time anesthesia is used, there is a risk of allergic reaction to it.
Any time you are inactive, recovering in bed, there is a risk of blood clots in the legs, and they can sometimes break loose and travel in the bloodstream to the lungs, becoming a pulmonary embolism. That is why your surgeon will have you get up as soon as possible and walk around a little to keep the blood from clotting.
Ways to Minimize Surgical Risks
If you are an obese person recovering from bariatric surgery, you are probably comfortable being inactive, since lack of physical activity is a common contributor to obesity in the first place. So you might be tempted to disregard your weight loss surgeon's recovery instructions, and not do any walking around your house.
Disregarding your post-operative instructions is a good way to develop surgical complications. Those instructions are for your benefit and are designed to optimize your surgical results. You disregard them at your peril. They can be disregarded in many ways, such as taking a shower before you have permission, not changing dressings on time, or not drinking enough water.
In the case of weight loss surgery, you might be tempted to eat too much despite the feeling of fullness. You would probably not do this during your immediate recovery, but results from weight loss surgery can take a couple of years to manifest. If you overeat during that time, you could cause the stomach to stretch or the opening to stretch where the banding device is creating the small stomach area necessary for weight loss. You could regain your excess weight, undoing the surgical results.
Potentially Serious Complications after Weight Loss Surgery
Even if you follow your post-op instructions to the letter, one or more serious situations could develop. Because of your obesity, there is extra stress on your lungs and chest cavity and this could cause pneumonia. Your surgeon would prescribe an antibiotic and hopefully all would be well.
You might develop a condition called "dumping syndrome", and feel nauseous, dizzy, and sweaty, with diarrhea and/or vomiting. Stomach contents are traveling through the small intestine too quickly. A corrective surgery can probably address this successfully.
If you had a banding procedure rather than a gastric bypass, the band could slip out of place or leak. Your surgeon can typically correct these problems with a follow-up surgery.
The best weight loss surgeons screen their patients very carefully. Patient education is central to success, and as the patient, you are responsible for maintaining new diet and exercise habits after your surgery.
Weight loss surgeon Dr. Carson Liu in Los Angeles offers free seminars in weight loss. He also offers a solid support program for his patients after their surgery, to help them keep their new slim shape. He talks with new patients in depth, to help them understand that they must change their food habits if they want to have a successful weight loss surgery.
welcome to Insurances.net (https://www.insurances.net)
