Who is a candidate for bariatric surgery?

You may qualify for bariatric surgery if you:

  1. Have a BMI that is equal to or greater than 40 or are more than 100 pounds overweight. (For example, an adult who is 5’11” tall and weighs 290 lbs would have a BMI over 40.) Calculate your BMI.
  2. Have a BMI that is equal to or greater than 35 and at least one obesity-related co-morbidity, such as: type II diabetes (T2DM), hypertension, sleep apnea and other respiratory disorders, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, osteoarthritis, lipid abnormalities, gastrointestinal disorders or heart disease. Calculate your BMI.
  3. Have been unable to maintain a healthy weight loss for a sustained period of time using other methods.

Guidelines provided by American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery.

Potential Benefits of Bariatric Surgery:

  • Improved psychological health and self-image
  • Reduction of some co-morbidities and health care expenses
  • Weight loss

Potential Risks of Bariatric Surgery:

  • Incisional hernia
  • Wound healing problems
  • Staple line leak
  • Blood clots
  • Bowel obstruction
  • Pneumonia
  • Gastric outlet obstruction
  • Vitamin and nutrition deficiencies
  • Death in less than one percent of patients

Additional Resources:

Visit the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS) for more information on bariatric surgery.

Note: Weight loss results vary depending on the individual. No guarantee of weight loss is provided or implied.

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