8
December
2008
By Andrew Stern
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Women who get pregnant after weight-loss surgery tend to be healthier and less likely to deliver a baby born with complications compared to obese women, researchers said on Tuesday.
An obese woman who has weight-loss, or bariatric, surgery also may increase her chances of getting pregnant in the first place by normalizing her menstrual cycles and hormone levels, the researchers found.
Obese women are more likely to have difficulty getting pregnnt, but after the surgery “there is some suggestion of increased fertility,” Dr. Melinda Maggard, a surgeon and researcher at the Rand Corp think tank in Santa Monica, California, said in a telephone interview.
Bariatric surgery alters the digestive system’s anatomy and reduces the volume of food that can be eaten and digested. The most common form is gastric bypass, which makes the stomach smaller and permits food to bypass part of the small intestine.
While lossing weight naturally is preferable, weight-loss surgery does reduce the risks of pregnancy-related problems such as diabetes and high blood pressure that can harm the mother and her newborn, said the RAND researchers who analyzed data from 75 earlier studies.
The risks of premature delivery, having a low birth wweight baby, or delivering an exceedingly large-bodied baby were reduced for women who had bariatric surgery compared to obese women, the report published in the Journal of the American Medical Association said.
In some cases, pregnancy-related risks after surgery were comparable to those for normal-weight women.
Bariatric procedures have surged in the past decade, with more than 200,000 performed last year in the United States. In the years 2002 to 2005 covered by the study, 150,000 U.S. women of child-bearing age underwent the surgery.
The study was requested by a group representing obstetricians and gynecologists.
A few women who had procedures that shrank the size of the stomach with bands or staples had the devices removed after they became pregnant — either because of discomfort or out of choice.
Others experienced pregnancy complications that likely were related to the surgery such as bowel obstructions, but overall maternal and infant deaths did not rise significantly.
Ideally, women should wait a year after the surgery to get pregnant to let their bodies adjust, but Maggard said some got pregnant earlier without problems.
Even overweight women not morbidly obese who are having difficulty getting pregnant might qualify for bariatric surgery if other weight-los efforts fail, but improving fertility ought not be the main reason to have the surgery, Maggard said.
A related concern after weight-loss surgery might be unplanned pregnancies, Maggard said, because their previous dose of oral contraceptives may not be absorbed adequately.
“They might consider barrier methods of birth control or other means,” she said.
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Posted: Weight loss and pregnancy, weight loss surgery
7
December
2008
Mississippi is in deep trouble. According to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, the Magnolia State is in the grip of an epidemic: the epidemic of obesity. Across our state, the number of overweight and obese individuals is rapidly increasing. In fact, almost 66% of the population of Mississippi is overweight or obese, making Missisippi the nation’s least healthy state. Diabetes, stroke, and heart disease are endemic in Misissippi’s population, especially within ethnic groups prone to being overweight. And it’s not just adults — a recent study using a sample of African-American children in the rural town of Canton, Mississippi revealed that 46% were overweight or at risk of being so.
Obesity is the second most frequent cause of preventable death in the United States, and Mississippi natives are not alone in their fight. However, if not addressed, severe and morbid obesity often lead to a shortened life span because those who suffer from obesity face a significantly higher risk of diabetes, heart attack and stroke.
This epidemic cannot be allowed to rage unchecked. Mississipi cannot be allowed to remain the nation’s least healthy state. Something must be done.
Obesity is not simply a matter of losing weight, nor is it a character flaw. It is a disease caused by a disordered relationship with food. Losing weight is simple math: when a person takes in fewer calories each day than their body needs to function, the body begins to burn fat to stay alive, resulting in weight loss.
The difficulty comes in restricting caloric intake – the primal urge to eat when hungry is almost irresistible. And, for some, the pleasure of eating is a substitute for emotional satisfaction. Others are food addicts, plagued by a constant craving for something to eat, regardless of whether they are physically hungry.
The difficulty of losing weight often leads those with the disease to attempt self-treatment, including crazy diets, extreme exercise programs, or “magical” weight-loss pills. Some do lose weight by these methods — but most gain it back fast, and usually damage their health in the process.
No miracle cure for obesity exists. The only way to successfully treat the disease of obesity is through medical care, based upon a complete change in the patient’s lifestyle and eating habits. To beat obesity, our state residents must begin to eat healthier foods in smaller portions. Most people can accomplish this lifestyle change through education, counseling, and sheer willpower.
But for many, weight loss surgery is the only way they can break destructive lifelong habits.
About Weight Loss Surgery
Weight loss surgery is performed under general anesthesia, usually laparoscopically. Its purpose is to physically limit the amount of food that the patient can eat by surgically altering his or her stomach or digestive tract. The alterations make it nearly impossible to overeat—at least initially—and cause the patient to take in fewer calories each day than he or she burns. Consequently, the patient loses weight safely, and relatively rapidly.
Weught loss surgery, however, is not magic. Only a complete change in a patient’s lifestyle can cure the disease. Patients who fail to follow postoperative instructions may regain any weight lost. Those considering bariatric surgery as an option for the management of obesity should discuss their options with their physician prior to making a decision.
Mississippi can win the war on obesity. We can send some other, lesser state to the bottom of the healthy-states list. By changing our diet and lifestyle – and by using weight loss sergery as a weapon of last resort – we can beat obesity here, and make things better in this state we all love.
By: Craig B. Thompson
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Posted: weight loss surgery
5
December
2008
Mercy Medical Center has become the first hospital on Long Island to offer a new single-incision Lap-Band(r) (laparoscopic gastric banding) procedure for weight loss surgery.
A team headed by Shawn Garber, MD, Chief of Bariatric Surgery at Mercy, with colleague Spencer Holover, MD, is among the first in the nation to utilize the innovative technique, known as Single Incision Laparoscopic Surgery (SILS), for gastric banding, using just one small opening in the abdomen, through the navel, rather than the five incisions required in traditional techniques.
“SILS is an important new option that holds the potential of less pain, fewer scars and quicker recovery,” explained Dr. Garber, who heads the New York Bariatric Group. “And most patients report that they can barely notice the single incision hidden in the belly button.”
In addition to its latest application in gastric banding for weight-loss, Dr. Garber utilizes the SILS technique for gall bladder surgery.
Dr. Garber is the only bariatric surgeon included in Newsday’s listing of Top Doctors on Long Island, and Mercy Medical Center is top-ranked in weight-loss surgery. Mercy received the 2008 Bariatric Surgery Excellence Award(tm) from HealthGrades(r), the nation’s leading independent healthcare ratings organization, and is a Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence designated the American Society For Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery.
Mercy’s Bariatric Center offers both Laparoscopic Banding (Adjustable Gastric Band) and Laparoscopic Gastric Bypass (also referred to as Roux-en-Y gastric bypass) which is considered the “Gold Standard” of modern obesity surgery. Both procedures are performed using state-of-the-art laparoscopic techniques with smaller incisions, less post-surgery pain, less time in the hospital, and a faster recovery.
Mercy offers monthly education and informational presentations for individuals who are contemplating bariatric surgery. For more information contact Mercy Medical Center at: 516-62-MERCY. Or visit on line at: www.MercyMedicalCenter.info
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Posted: weight loss surgery