Does Gastric Sleeve Work? Who Is It Suitable For?

What is gastric sleeve surgery?

With a gastric sleeve, patients’ stomachs are shrunk to resemble a banana. The gut of the patient receiving the gastric sleeve procedure is 80% smaller. The portion of the patient’s stomach that secretes the ghrelin hormone, or hunger hormone, will be removed, which also results in the patient feeling less hungry than before. Additionally, because of the shrinkage of the stomach, the patient will be able to feel satisfied on less food.

What does a gastric sleeve do?

By making your stomach smaller, you can easily restrict how much food you can consume at once. As a consequence, you fill up quicker. It also restricts the amount of hunger-inducing chemicals your stomach can produce. This lessens hunger and cravings and can aid in resisting the temptations that cause individuals to regain lost weight. As a consequence, it is a highly favored method.

How common is gastric sleeve surgery?

A sleeve gastrectomy is the most common weight loss surgery performed globally. More than half of all yearly procedures for bariatric surgery in the USA involve sleeve gastrectomy. Each year, 380,000 sleeve gastrectomy operations are performed in the United States and about 150,000 worldwide. This treatment, which has had very good results, aims to change obese people’s lives right away. The gastric sleeve surgery may also result in very good results.

What medical conditions does gastric sleeve surgery help treat?

Being overweight alone isn’t restricted to being overweight. Additionally, it contributes to numerous illnesses. Because of this, sleeve gastrectomy surgery is a surgical option for treating obesity and diseases linked to it. Only qualified people with severe obesity-related medical conditions or those who are at high risk of developing them will be provided with it. In some cases, gastric sleeve operation can completely eradicate certain illnesses, such as:

• Insulin resistance and Type 2 diabetes.
• Hypertension and hypertensive heart disease.
• Hyperlipidemia (high cholesterol) and arterial disease.
• Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and steatohepatitis.
• Obesity hypoventilation syndrome and obstructive sleep apnea.
• Joint pain and osteoarthritis.

Is the gastric sleeve safe?

The risks of having gastric sleeve operation pale in comparison to the dangers of obesity and the diseases it is linked to. Additionally, compared to other popular procedures like hip replacement and gallbladder surgery, it has fewer complications. Most gastric sleeve procedures are performed with minimally invasive surgical techniques, which has the advantage of less pain from incisions and a quicker recuperation.

Am I Suitable for gastric sleeve surgery?

The basic requirements to qualify are:

You are a candidate for surgery if you have significant obesity. Consequently, you should have a minimum bodily mass of 40. Or you must have type 2 diabetes as a result of being obese. Additionally, if you have issues like sleep apnea, your BMI of 35 will make you perspire.

What happens before gastric sleeve surgery?

If you pass your health test and are eligible for bariatric sleeve surgery, the next step is a two-week liquid diet. Your surgeon will provide you with specific directions to follow. It is meant to lose some of the belly and liver fat to make the procedure safer.

Before your procedure, you won’t be permitted to eat or drink anything for 12 hours. To make sure your stomach is empty when therapy starts, do this. While having surgery, eating or drinking in your stomach may have negative or even harmful side effects.

How is gastric sleeve surgery performed?

A laparoscopic or robotic procedure is usually used to carry out a sleeve gastrectomy. This means that instead of making a large incision (or cut) to open your abdomen and obtain access to your organs, your surgeon will perform the procedure through smaller incisions. This speeds up recovery, but based on the patient’s condition, some may benefit more from open surgery.

What happens during gastric sleeve surgery?

1. Your surgeon will give you general anesthesia, so you’ll be asleep during the procedure.
2. Your surgeon will make a small cut in your abdomen (about 1/2 inch long) and insert a port. They’ll pump carbon dioxide gas through the port to expand your abdomen.
3. Then they’ll place a small lighted video camera (laparoscope) through the port. The camera will project your insides onto a screen.
4. Through one to three additional incisions, your surgeon will insert additional ports and complete the procedure using long, narrow tools.
5. They will measure out the gastric sleeve, then divide and separate the remainder of your stomach using a surgical stapler.
6. Your surgeon will remove the remainder of the stomach, then close your incisions.

How long does gastric sleeve surgery take?

Comparing a sleeve gastrectomy to other weight loss surgical methods, it is a relatively quick and simple process. It takes between 60 and 90 minutes. Your doctor might still advise that you stay in the hospital for the ensuing one to two days. These can then help you manage your discomfort and any immediate side effects of surgery, like nausea.

What happens after gastric sleeve surgery?

You’ll make regular maintenance visits to your doctor over the coming weeks and months. They’ll monitor your weight loss, any underlying medical conditions, and any unfavorable surgery side effects. They’ll also want to know that you’re taking excellent care of yourself and following the right lifestyle guidelines in order for your health and weight loss to last.

Will I have to follow a diet after gastric sleeve surgery?

You must follow strict dietary restrictions in the near future to make sure your stomach heals correctly. After a few months, you might start eating more regularly, but you’ll still need to make wise dietary decisions. Because you won’t be able to eat as much as you used to, you’ll need to make sure that what you do eat is nutritious enough to satisfy your energy needs. You’ll start consuming vitamins soon after surgery and will need to do so always.

What are the advantages of this procedure?

Other bariatric surgery procedures are quicker, riskier, and less complex than the gastric sleeve procedure. Patients with medical conditions that might prevent them from having a longer course of treatment frequently tolerate a sleeve gastrectomy. Since your intestines are not reorganized during the process, long-term nutritional problems are also much less likely to arise.

Even though the average weight loss is a little less than with more sophisticated weight loss procedures, gastric sleeve surgery still offers excellent weight loss and health benefits. This operation was the first of a two-step bariatric surgery called the duodenal switch. Many patients realized they didn’t have to complete the second half, so doctors started offering it as a stand-alone procedure.

What are the possible risks or complications of gastric sleeve surgery?

Most of the time, there are no risks in gastric sleeve surgery. Pain and nausea are experienced only after the surgery. However, in some cases, it is possible to experience risks such as bleeding and infection.

What is the recovery time from gastric sleeve surgery?

Give yourself at least a month before you anticipate feeling fully better or being able to resume working at your peak capacity. During this period, a lot of people feel worn out or exhausted as their bodies work to recover and adjust to the calorie restriction. Only a liquid meal will be manageable for the first few weeks. Eventually, you’ll switch to a soft diet, then solid meals.

How much weight will you lose with the gastric sleeve?

You should anticipate losing 25% to 30% of your total weight in the first one to two years on average. This suggests that you would lose 100 pounds after surgery if you were 300 pounds before. You can drop more or less weight after surgery depending on the lifestyle choices you make. Although some people do regain some weight, the average weight loss of 25% to 30% of your body weight over the period of five years is stable.

What if it doesn’t work?

Even though it is rare, some individuals do manage to gain back the weight they lose. They might go back to their old ways, or maybe eventually their gut will start to grow again. If this happens to you, you might consider having a gastric sleeve revision procedure. If your doctor thinks a gastric bypass or duodenal switch will produce better results, they might replace the initial gastric sleeve procedure.