The weight-loss journey is usually not an easy one, with so much commitment and discipline required. Sticking to a healthy diet and observing regular exercise may help you lose some pounds. However, this might not be the case for every obese individual. When diet and physical activity prove futile, a gastric sleeve in Frisco may be an option for you. It is a surgical procedure that substantially reduces your stomach size, limiting food intake and absorption of calories by the body. Gastrectomy may not be the first recommendation from your doctor if you want to lose weight and is usually used when all other weight-loss strategies have produced little to no results.
What are the potential complications of gastric sleeve surgery?
Although the surgical techniques for gastric sleeve surgery have improved over the years, patients may still be at risk for complications. Some may occur immediately after the procedure, while others may develop later after surgery. Some of the examples include:
- Leakage from the stomach due to the stapling during surgery. It is a rare complication, and if it happens, an endoscopic procedure can be used for treatment.
- Stenosis. A part of the stomach may close, resulting in an obstruction rectified with endoscopic dilation.
- Heartburn. While some patients who previously had heartburn no longer get it, heartburn may worsen or develop in others.
- Bleeding.
- Respiratory problems such as pneumonia because pain causes you to limit your breathing.
What does the procedure entail?
Gastric sleeve surgery is usually done laparoscopically but traditionally where a surgeon makes open incisions in your abdomen. It is less invasive when done using a laparoscope, and patients take a shorter time to recover. A laparoscope is a long narrow tube with a light, a tiny camera, and other instruments attached at its tip. Before surgery, your specialist uses general anesthesia to make you unconscious and relaxed during the procedure. Since you cannot breathe at that state, a ventilator aids your breathing.
Next, the surgeon makes tiny openings or incisions on your abdomen where the laparoscope is inserted. A laparoscope allows the doctor to inspect the inside of your stomach, making it easier to conduct the procedure. Your doctor will then insert a tube into your stomach to get an accurate size of the new stomach. Using a staple, the surgeon divides the stomach into two unequal parts and gets rid of 80% of the stomach. The remaining stomach is usually banana-shaped and is approximately 20-25% of the initial stomach volume.
After gastric sleeve surgery
You may need to observe some dietary changes at least a month after surgery. For example, your diet only includes sugarless and non-carbonated liquids. During the next three weeks, you need to have pureed foods before you can resume regular but healthy meals. Since the volume of the stomach significantly reduces after surgery, the body gets lesser nutrients. For this reason, you need to take supplements such as calcium, multivitamin, and vitamin B-12 monthly for the rest of your life to avoid malnutrition.
Unlike other bariatric procedures, it is not possible to reverse gastric sleeve surgery. If you want to learn more about this procedure, consult with your specialist today at THE BARIATRIC EXPERTS.
