Complications from Gastric Bypass Surgery

The same health risks that lead obese people to become eligible for gastric bypass surgery can also make them susceptible to additional complications either during or after the surgery is performed. This information is based on a five-year imaging study that was led by a Duke University Medical Center radiologist.

Patients who had received Roux-en-Y gastric surgery at the University Hospitals of Cleveland were followed after the procedure, the most popular one to aid extremely obese patients with weight loss. The procedure is performed by stapling the upper stomach in order to create a small pouch, which is then attached to the small intestine. This, in turn, reduces stomach capacity and the ability of the intestines to absorb nutrients. Of the 335 patients who were followed in the study, radiological imaging reports showed 57 complications related to the surgeries, many of which were multiple problems involving the same patient. Some of the complications discovered in the study included suture tears and leaks, pulmonary embolism, pneumonia, and infection.

Because severely obese patients are already at risk for any type of surgery due to other health conditions related to their weight, there is an unusual amount of procedure-specific complications likely to occur after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery. The results of the study indicate that the procedure should have been a last resort and used only after all other types of intervention failed including diet and exercise. The findings show the importance of the use of radiological imaging following gastric bypass surgery in order to diagnose complications in severely obese patients.

During the study, researchers reported eight cases of leaks from the stomach entering the surround abdominal area and five cases of staple line disruption in the stomach among the complications that were specific to Roux-en-Y. Three cases of pulmonary embolism, two of pneumonia, and other single cases of severe infection and disruption of abdominal wound were observed, all complications that are prevalent among severely obsess patients who undergo any kind of surgical procedures. Additionally, within thirty days following the procedure, seventeen patients had been readmitted to the hospital.

It's quite with the results of this study that this procedure should be used as a last option, and only after other less-invasive treatments have been tried. Besides the complications that can develop, the procedure requires patients to make major lifestyle changes. After surgery, patients must restrict their eating habits, thus relying on vitamin supplements for adequate nutrition. In order to be eligible for the surgery, the patient must be at least 100 pounds overweight and must have life-threatening conditions related to obesity such as Type 2 diabetes or cardiopulmonary problems.