WeightWise does not recommend mini gastric bypass surgery in Oklahoma City. Our experience and expertise in bariatric surgeries and other weight-loss procedures have led us to this conclusion.
We believe there is no advantage to a mini gastric bypass. In fact, some patients experience persistent eating difficulty after this surgery. Others require re-operation for complications to the newly created stomach pouch.
Medicine sometimes advances and sometimes it retreats. In the case of mini gastric bypass, we don’t consider it to be an advance.
Continuing with this train of thought, we should mention a few other approaches that do not have our seal of approval. These approaches to weight-loss surgery include vertical banded gastroplasty, open gastric bypass, and gastric plication. We have written pieces on each of these, and we recommend following the links to learn more about them.
These procedures have shown themselves to have varying levels of success. Unfortunately, there’s just not enough evidence yet to convince us to recommend these weight loss surgeries in Oklahoma City.
In fact, there are reasons why the above-mentioned surgeries are not implemented as readily as they might otherwise be. Again, we encourage you to read the links to each of the procedures mentioned above.
Mini Gastric Bypass: The ‘Fobi Pouch’
The mini gastric bypass combines stomach reduction with a gastric bypass. Also known as the Fobi Pouch after Mal Fobi, the surgeon who invented it, this surgical procedure is, as its name implies, a variation of the more standard gastric bypass operation. As far back as 2000, stories were appearing in the national media regarding the controversies of this procedure.
The Fobi Pouch attracted much attention and was glamorized as the go-to choice for Hollywood and Los Angeles celebrities. And yet the controversy about the procedure was never left out of the reporting. This is crucial information for patients considering their weight-loss options.
To sum this page up: The mini gastric bypass is more complicated than other procedures. It involves both stapling and the insertion of a ring that restricts the amount of food entering the stomach.
As bariatric surgeons, we believe the Fobi Pouch procedure has a higher chance of complications. We will continue to discourage patients from pursuing it. It may lead to long-term hospital stays. It reduces the size of the stomach to an extreme, thus limiting food intake to such a degree that it may lead to additional health challenges.
We perform a number of bariatric surgeries, including duodenal switch, gastric sleeve, and laparoscopic gastric bypass (Roux-en-Y), which we recommend over the mini gastric bypass that we’ve discussed at some length on this page. The operating times vary for each, as does the resulting shape and size of the stomach and small intestine.
Please contact WeightWise medical center with any questions. We can help you make the best decision for your situation and present you with a customized solution to your obesity, morbid obesity, or obesity-related issues.