Gastric Banding Is The Best Treatment To Morbid Obesity

By Author: Amy Adison
Total Articles: 12
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When you are out of shape, it’s not only the food which you have to take care about but also you miss out on your favorite outfits. Moreover, if you are suffering from morbid obesity, you really need to get rid of this problem. Morbid obesity refers to those who are 50 to 100% above their ideal body weight. Therefore it is very important you get rid of this obesity.

Some of the medical problems which you might face because of the untreated morbid obesity are:
• Diabetes
• Hypertension
• Heart disease
• Depression
• Stroke
• Osteoarthritis
• Cancers like breast and colon
• Sleep apnea

GASTRIC BANDING SURGERY FOR WEIGHT LOSS

Gastric banding can be one of the best ways to get rid of morbid obesity. Here a surgeon uses a technique to reduce the size of the stomach. After this type of restrictive surgery, patient eats less and loses weight.

Two types of restrictive surgeries are:

Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding

Vertical banded gastroplasty

Gastric banding involves-

An adjustable silicone band is placed ...
... around the upper part of the stomach. This is done with the help of laparoscopic tools.

After the gastric banding surgery, the stomach can hold very less food (about an ounce). This is due to the constriction made by the silicon band as the stomach becomes a small pouch with an outlet around one inch wide.

In the silicone band, a plastic tube runs to a device which is placed just under the skin. Sterile salt water (saline) can be injected or ejected through the skin which flows into or out of the silicone band. This injection of saline water is done to fill the band and make it tight.

This injection and ejection helps you to tighten or loosen the band as per requirement. This also helps in reducing the side effects and also improves weight loss.

Morbid obesity can be controlled to a great extent with the help of gastric banding. After this kind of restrictive surgery you can loose up to 40% of excess weight. However, reduction of weight varies from person to person. This kind of weight loss surgery is one of the safest one and has low complication rate. Also the procedure can be reserved if required. With time the stomach also returns to its normal size.

Some of the common problems which one may face after the surgery are as follows:

Nausea and vomiting are common problem but this can be controlled by adjusting the position of the band.

There might be minor surgical complications but there is less than 10% chance of this. Some of the minor surgical problems are- wound infections, adjustment of the device, minor bleeding etc.

Note: Risk of death due to gastric banding is around one in 2,000.

This surgery is the best solution to get rid of morbid obesity and also there are rare chances of loosing vitamins as it doesn’t interfere with food absorption.

Amy Adison is a web enthusiast and a writer. Amy has afforded his articles and write-ups autonomously and through various online forums.

Get more information on: Morbid Obesity and Gastric Banding.