‘’Fat’’ is also called ‘’obese’’ in medical terminology. If the patient looks fat, he or she is fat doctors calculate your BMI (body mass index) to know how much excess weight a person has in relation to their height. BMI of a normal weight person ranges from 18-24.9kg/m2.

Calculate your BMI

W.H.O. 1999 (Criterion)

European group for the study of insulin resistance-1999

National cholesterol education program audit treatment panel-guidelines in 2001 adult

Indian criteria for obesity (Indian institute of nutrition, Hyderabad)

Bariatric surgery is a group of surgeries which are performed to induce long term excess weight loss along with curing and or improving most of the medical problems like diabetes, blood pressure, arthritis etc.

It will restrict or reduce the amount you can eat or it can cause you not to absorb all of the food you eat or it can be a combination of the two.

Depending on the type of surgery anywhere from 36% to 90% of your excess body weight (EBW) will be lost over a period of 6 months to two years. Clinical studies have shown that following surgery most patients lose weight rapidly and continue to do so up until 18 to 24 months after the procedure. However you will wake up from the surgery without weigh loss. However, patients may lose 30 to 50% of their excess weight in the first 6 months, and ~77% as early as 12 months after surgery. Another study has shown that patients could maintain 50-60% loss of excess weight 10-14 years after surgery.

About 65-75% of the excess weight will be lost within the first year after gastric bypass surgery and the majority of that may occur within the first six months. The weight loss will taper, but can continue for the subsequent years. Some patients have achieved 100% loss of their excess weight.

Most patients stay in the hospital approximately 2 to 5 days after a laparoscopic procedure. Patients will be discharged when they tolerate liquids and nutrients by mouth to prevent dehydration, having adequate pain control with medications by mouth and having no fever, vomiting, respiratory discomfort, excess drain output etc.

You will be on liquid diet for almost 2 weeks than puree diet for 15 days and then soft diet till 75% of your excess body weight lost. Than you can continue your regular diet.

Majority of the patients do not develop any major side effects, their life will change and so will their health, hopefully, an improvement in both. You may be participating in more activities and getting more exercise. Don’t forget the clothes shopping. During your rapid weight loss period don’t purchase too many clothes because your size may change rapidly.

The female patients are advised to wait at least two years after surgery to avoid the stress of a pregnancy during the period of rapid weight loss and allow her weight to stabilize. Please be careful to use birth control methods in the first 18 to 24 months.

Yes, some of the complications will resolve and some will improve dramatically, like sleep apnea, asthma, hypertension and high cholesterol. In fact the type II diabetes will respond with 85-90% resolution and obesity surgery is now considered the best treatment for type II diabetes.