Sleeve Gastrectomy
Patients who don't want to have a long-term implanted medical device now have another option with the vertical sleeve gastrectomy.
A sleeve gastrectomy procedure involves removing approximately 85% of volume of the stomach of the stomach, leaving a slender stomach "sleeve." This new stomach has a total capacity of just three to five ounces, which means patients feel full or satisfied after eating only a small amount of food. This surgery also causes changes in hormones that work to further promote a feeling of fullness. Sleeve gastrectomy permanently reduces the size of the stomach, limiting the amount of food you can eat and helping you to feel full faster, and longer.
The laparoscopic vertical sleeve gastrectomy has several advantages over the bypass, including:
- Because the normal flow of food through the GI tract is not altered, your risk of nutritional deficiencies is greatly reduced.
- When the outer portion of the stomach is removed, so is the hunger hormone, Ghrelin. This significantly reduces your desire to eat.
- According to published medical data, weight loss with the laparoscopic vertical sleeve gastrectomy can be 60 to 70 percent of excess weight at two years.
- Research shows 60 to 70 percent of laparoscopic vertical sleeve gastrectomy patients maintain their weight loss six years following surgery.
- No long-term risk of gastric ulcers and internal hernias with the sleeve, yet those risks remain with gastric bypass.
Patient results may vary. Consult your physician about the benefits and risks of any surgical procedure or treatment.