Weight loss surgery
Bariatric surgery in Salt Lake City
Weight loss surgery or bariatric surgery can save lives and continues to benefit people with obesity worldwide.
With each successful surgery, we see further evidence that bariatric surgery is an effective weight loss tool and treatment for obesity-related health conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure and sleep apnea. That's why MountainStar Healthcare offers a comprehensive bariatrics program that provides patient safety and support throughout your weight loss journey. Our program offers both surgical and non-surgical weight loss programs designed to help you lose weight and keep it off.
Talk to a member of our bariatric care team
Weight loss surgery or bariatric surgery can save lives and continues to benefit people with obesity worldwide. Talk about your options with our bariatric care coordinator by calling (801) 268-7448.
Weight loss surgery or bariatric surgery can save lives and continues to benefit people with obesity worldwide. Talk about your options with our bariatric care coordinator by calling (801) 268-7448.
Are you a candidate for weight loss surgery?
Start your journey today by taking a free assessment.
Start your journey today by taking a free assessment.
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Benefits of bariatric surgery
Bariatric surgery can save lives and continues to benefit people struggling with morbid obesity worldwide. With each successful procedure, the medical community sees further evidence that bariatric surgery is an effective weight loss tool and treatment for obesity-related health conditions. Studies show that bariatric surgery patients are living longer lives of higher quality.
The risk of an early death for an obese person is twice that of a non-obese person, according to recent studies. Morbid obesity can shorten lives and cause life-threatening health problems such as diabetes, heart disease, heart attack, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Weight loss surgery helps decrease your chances of these and other conditions, including sleep apnea and arthritis. With treatment, good health and a longer life are much more likely.
Risks of bariatric surgery
All surgeries and medical procedures carry risk. It's important to talk to your doctor, other weight loss surgery patients and your loved ones to best understand the benefits and risks for your individual situation.
Gastric bypass
The Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass is the most common and successful type of weight loss surgery and considered the gold standard of weight loss procedures. This metabolic surgery has shown significant improvements on medical conditions such as diabetes, sleep apnea, and high blood pressure.
First, a small stomach pouch is created to restrict food intake. Next, a Y-shaped section of the small intestine is attached to the pouch to allow food to bypass the lower stomach, the duodenum (the first segment of the small intestine), and the first portion of the jejunum (the second segment of the small intestine). This bypass reduces the amount of calories and nutrients the body absorbs, and is both non-reversible and non-adjustable.
On average, more than half of patients lose 70% or more of their extra weight and then start to maintain. Long-term success is dependent on accepting new rules for eating and food selection, which is taught in the follow-up period after surgery.
Sleeve gastrectomy
The vertical sleeve gastrectomy is a restrictive form of weight-loss surgery in which approximately 85% of the stomach is removed, leaving a cylindrical or sleeve-shaped stomach, which is about the size of a banana. With this surgery, the outlet valve and the nerves to the stomach remain intact and, while the stomach is drastically reduced in size, its function is preserved.
The gastric sleeve results in fewer restrictions on the foods that patients can consume after surgery, although the quantity of food eaten is still considerably reduced. It does not involve any bypass or the intestinal tract, and it can be performed laparoscopically.
For obese patients with a relatively low BMI, the vertical sleeve gastrectomy may be a good choice, especially where existing conditions such as anemia or Crohn's disease prevent them from having other forms of bariatric surgery.
Duodenal switch
The duodenal switch, also known as the biliopancreatic diversion with duodenal switch (BPDDS), is the most powerful weight loss surgery available. The duodenal switch is performed by permanently removing a portion of the stomach, making it about the size and shape of a banana, also known as a sleeve gastrectomy.
The duodenal switch promotes weight loss primarily through malabsorption. This is done by bypassing a portion of the small intestine. This section of the small intestine where food and digestive enzymes meet is called the common limb. Following a duodenal switch, the common limb where nutrients and calories will primarily be digested and absorbed is about three feet long.