Procedures

The right surgery for you

Surgery can work two basic ways to help patients lose weight and improve weight-related conditions:

• Malabsorption: This changes the way food travels through the patient’s body in order to limit the body’s ability to absorb calories and nutrients from food.
• Restriction: This changes the body in order to limit the amount of food the patient can eat.

Seton offers several types of weight-loss surgery procedures. The two most popular are Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass Surgery and Laparoscopic Adjustable Banding Procedure. In addition, Seton also offers the Duodenal Switch. It’s up to you and your physician(s) to determine which surgery will likely prove most successful.

Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass Surgery (RNY)

This procedure uses both malabsorption and restriction to promote weight loss. The surgery reduces the size of the stomach from the size of a melon to the size of an egg, restricting the amount of food the patient can eat. It also alters the length of the small intestine, reducing the amount of calories and nutrients the patient’s body can absorb.

What you need to know about RNY:

• It’s considered the “gold standard” of weight-loss surgery, and has been tested successfully over time.
• It’s a complex surgery and not easily reversible.
• Patients typically experience the greatest weight loss during the first 3-12 months post-op.
• It creates deficiencies in vitamin and mineral absorption, so patients must fortify their diet with supplements over the long term.
• It leaves no significant hardware within the patient’s body.

Laparoscopic Adjustable Banding Procedure (Lap Band)

This procedure uses only restriction to promote weight loss. The surgery places a band around the top part of the patient’s stomach, creating a smaller upper stomach and a larger lower stomach. The band is adjustable (by the surgeon) to let food pass from the upper to the lower stomach at a slower or faster rate, depending upon patient need. The band typically requires 5-6 adjustments within the first year post-op in order to maintain steady weight loss.

What you need to know about Lap Band:

• It involves newer technology, but is a less technical surgery and more easily reversed.
• Patients typically experience more gradual weight loss (1-2 lbs./week), eventually reaching a total loss similar to Roux-En-Y (2 years post-op).
• It can create vitamin and mineral deficiencies, so supplementation is advised.
• It leaves implant material within the patient’s body.