Gastric Bypass surgery—A weight loss option

Roux-en-Y gastric bypass is an effective, minimally-invasive, surgical weight loss (bariatric) tool, that assists individuals with excess weight loss and maintenance of that weight reduction. Considered the most frequently-performed and most well-recognized weight loss surgery in the United States, the gastric bypass is a procedure which essentially reduces the size of the stomach and the length of the small intestine. This shortens the digestive path that food is required to travel, thus reducing the amount of food absorbed while still affording individuals an early sense of being full or satisfied. Consequently the desire to eat is also reduced.

The digestive system is comprised of the stomach, small intestine, and large intestine. When healthy and functioning correctly, these organs allow food to be digested slowly, thus helping the body absorb as many nutrients and calories as possible. The stomach expands and stretches to accommodate the quantity of food it is required to contain, and over a period of time, the stomach will stretch and stay stretched as it grows accustom to consistent amounts of food. The gastric bypass closes off part of the stomach, reducing its size considerably, allowing an individual to feel satisfied much sooner. This procedure continues by bypassing or “short-cutting” portions of the intestinal system, greatly reducing the quantity of time and calories the body is allowed to absorb.

Gastric bypass surgery can be performed using traditional open methods or state-of-the-art minimally invasive techniques. At MIMIS surgeons predominantly use minimally invasive techniques which means reduced pain, reduced length of hospital stay, and reduced recovery period versus traditional open surgery. Cuyuna Regional Medical Center’s Minnesota Institute for Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIMIS) is home to twelve surgeons trained to perform more than one hundred different types of minimally invasive procedures. Using cameras, scopes, and small-diameter surgical tools, these procedures eliminate the need to make major incisions, lower the risk of infection, and lead to faster recovery for patients, among many other health benefits. At MIMIS on the medical campus in Crosby, more than seventy percent of all procedures are performed using minimally invasive techniques. Roux-en-Y gastric bypass is one such procedure.