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Bariatric surgery, or weight loss surgery, is a type of surgery performed on people who are severely obese or who are unable to lose enough weight by other means. Bariatric surgery can help reduce the health risks associated with obesity such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, and osteoarthritis. For some obese patients with heart disease, bariatric surgery may be recommended along with coronary artery disease treatment. Bariatric surgery is also sometimes recommended for obese patients prior to hip replacement or knee replacement surgery to improve outcomes.
The basic types of bariatric surgery include:
Patients who are considering bariatric surgery can find comprehensive care at the Center for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery at Brigham and Women's Hospital.
Learn more now about bariatric surgery and other weight loss services at Brigham and Women's Hospital.
In this video, Dr. Scott Shikora, Director of Brigham and Women's Center for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, discusses weight loss surgery options for weight loss and metabolic treatment in patients with a body mass index (BMI) greater than 40 or BMI greater than 35 with a major co-morbid condition. Weight loss surgery, or bariatric surgery, can result in meaningful and sustainable weight loss that has long term health benefits. Brigham and Women's Center for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery performs several weight loss surgery procedures including lap band surgery (adjustable gastric band), sleeve gastrectomy and gastric bypass surgery.
The Center for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery at Brigham and Women's Hospital has performed over 1,000 bariatric surgery procedures. Each patient is supported by a team of dietitians, physician assistants, and nurses who provide the appropriate dietary, behavioral, and medical support to reduce complications and maximize good outcomes.
Our surgeons use minimally invasive or laparoscopic techniques to perform virtually all bariatric surgery operations, resulting in less pain and reduced time to full recovery. Innovative robot-assisted techniques enable our specialists to offer minimally invasive surgery to certain severely obese patients who do not qualify for traditional laparoscopic gastric bypass. The Center has also developed a number of unique, minimally invasive endoscopic procedures used to make adjustments for a subset of patients who experience weight regain several years following gastric bypass surgery.
Specialists at Brigham and Women's Hospital are pioneering research on new minimally invasive techniques, including leading several trials of innovative endoluminal (through natural openings in the body) techniques in bariatric surgery. They are also collaborating with industry to refine medical instruments used in endoscopic surgery and development of novel weight loss therapy.
In addition, researchers in our Cardiovascular, Diabetes, and Metabolic Disorders Research Center at the Brigham and Women's Biomedical Research Institute (BRI) are studying obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease with the goal of advancing discoveries leading to improvements in treatment of these disorders, including artery disease treatment.
Learn more about Bariatric Surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
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