Obesity Surgery
Obesity surgery, medically called bariatric surgery, reshapes a patients stomach to make it much smaller so small that it can only hold a few ounces of food at a time. This also reduces the calorie-absorbing surface of the digestive tract.
As a leader in obesity surgery, Saint Raphael’s, in fact, offers a full continuum of related care, including before and after counseling; support groups; nutritional counseling; plastic surgery services; and much more.
Types of surgery:
Gastric Bypass Roux-en-y The Gastric Bypass Roux-en-y procedure involves a small portion of the stomach being surgically sectioned off to create a small pouch that will only hold about an ounce of food before feeling uncomfortably full. Its an involved, non-reversible procedure that requires a patient stay several days in the hospital, then recuperate for several weeks at home. Patients may have a traditional, open surgical procedure or a minimally-invasive laparoscopic procedure depending upon surgery options. Click here to learn more.
Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Band Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Band procedure is a purely restrictive surgical procedure in which a band is placed around the upper most part of the stomach. This band divides the stomach into two portions, one small and one larger portion. Because food is regulated, most patients feel full faster. Food digestion occurs through the normal digestive process. Click here to learn more.
Laparoscopic or Minimally Invasive Surgery Laparoscopic surgery requires only five small incisions are required as opposed to a single large incision in traditional open surgery. Most patients spend just two to three days in the hospital, followed by about two weeks of recovery at home. Click here to learn more.
Robotic Surgery The Hospital of Saint Raphael was the first hospital in New England, and just the second in the nation, to perform fully robotic gastric bypass surgery with the da Vinci Surgical System. Benefits include less patient blood loss, greater surgical precision, fewer post-surgical complications and quicker recovery. Most patients who qualify for traditional minimally invasive bariatric surgery can have the daVinci system used for their procedure.
Finding a doctor To find a surgeon who performs bariatric surgery in your area, please visit the Center for Obesity Surgery at the Hospital of Saint Raphael online at www.obesitysurgeryhsr.com.
This page was last updated on 8/7/07 |