In the past, bypass surgery has been a major option for the morbidly obese persons but the number of risks associated with it were also many. However, the latest laparoscopic advancements have greatly reduced the number of these risks.
This surgery was first introduced half a century back and since then, a number of experiments have been done with it to continuously improve it. The idea of this surgery first came to the surgeons when it was noticed that the removal of intestines in patients also led to their weight-loss. This led them to discover the fact that if the length of the intestines was reduced then the absorption of the calories also decreased which ultimately led to weight loss.
When this surgery was first introduced, it became an instant hit but the number of side-effects was many. These ranged from mild to fatal complications. However, the patients became weak as the nutrients were not properly absorbed. This finally led to malnutrition. This led for the need to search for bariatric techniques for performing this surgery so that the stomach is bypassed as well as the nutrients are absorbed.
The numbers of risks associated with the earlier surgery were also many. The introduction of the bariatric form of gastric bypass also made this surgery less invasive. Earlier, a large cut was made and the skin was stretched away from the stomach by inflating the stomach cavity with carbon dioxide. The laparoscopic approach lets the surgeons perform the gastric bypass surgery by just doing small incisions. This helps to reduce the number of risks and also helps to decrease the recovery time considerably.
The data obtained during 2001-2002 showed that the rate of initial state complications in the laparoscopic gastric bypass was 34% lower than the rate in normal surgery. Similarly, the rate of 30-day complication in the laparoscopic surgery was 2% lower than the lower. Overall, the laparoscopic surgery had a rate 23% lower than the normal surgery.
Also, nowadays the gastric bypass surgery can also be performed by the robots. However, whatever advancements we might have made in this surgery, the fact remains that the morbidity rate is still high. All the advancements in the equipments, technology and advances in pathophysiology have all helped the surgeons to make great changes in the styles of performing this surgery and helped to minimize the rate of morbidity and maximize the rate of weight loss. It has also helped to make the weight loss long-term.
Andres Bracker
