Bariatric Surgery Death

BARIATRIC SURGERY: A FATAL ERROR?
According to recent statistics, more than half of all Americans are overweight, and those who are severely obese (meaning they are at least 100 pounds overweight) are turning towards weight loss reduction surgery in record numbers. One doctor even told a major online medical content provider that he expects the number of people undergoing the procedure this year to be double that of five years ago. However, there are many health risks involved with the weight reduction surgery, including ulcers, abscesses, vomiting, diarrhea. There have even been many bariatric surgery deaths reported.

In fact, in January of 2004, a Massachusetts state health department panel met to investigate all of the gastric bypass surgery deaths that had been reported.

"Because of the dramatic increase in demand for this surgery and the number of deaths, we have enough concern that we need to get the experts together and look at whether there's opportunity for improvement," Nancy Ridley, assistant commissioner of public health, said in an interview with Liz Kowalczyk of the Boston Globe. "Many people who are planning to have this surgery are concerned. Parents are concerned because it's being hyped toward kids. It's not something that's going away. There are questions and people want answers."

Even though it they may risk death, gastric bypass continues to be immensely popular, with an estimated 100,000 individuals expected to undergo the procedure within the next 12 months. What is the effective death rate for gastric bypass surgery? It depends upon the source, as different experts cite a different number of instances of gastric bypass death. The percentage of deaths in gastric bypass can range from 1% to 1 in every 200 or 300 patients, although it should be noted that this is just the rate of death. Gastric bypass can also result in many other health-related complications, which appear in approximately 10% to 25% of those who undergo the procedure.

Even if the percentages seem low, anyone who is considering undergoing weight reduction surgery should be aware that there have been many a recorded occurrence of gastric bypass surgery death. That said, there are also many health risks involved directly with obesity. According to the Center for Disease Control, there are more than 300,000 annual fatalities that can directly be attributed to obesity and lack of physical activity. Either way, there is risk involved. As always, consult your physician before making an decision regarding bariatric surgery.