| A Loing Battle: Scaling down
It's somewhat funny to think back 14 months when I finally decided to risk my life and undergo bariatric weight loss surgery. At 509 pounds, I was afraid I'd die on the operating table.
If I had not made the decision, however, I may not have lived to see my youngest son Brad play his first season of flag football this fall because I was on the fast road to an early death.
I made the decision that was in the best interest of me and my family, and on Sept. 20, 2006, my life changed forever when I had the surgery. I was the largest patient that Presbyterian Hospital of Denton ever got approved for the Lap-Band procedure.
My main goal was to lose 100 pounds. I figured I could live another 10 years and see both of my boys through high school if I could get down to 400 pounds.
Surgery Shown Online
It's one of the most popular procedures among consumers, so much so that an internet broadcast company is showing a local gastric bypass surgery online tonight. “It shows not just the Harrisburg area, but nationally or internationally really what we've done here," says Dr. Luciano Dimarco. Dr. Dimarco, medical director of bariatric surgery at Pinnacle Health, has performed thousands of gastric bypass surgeries in ten years. This one however, on a 41-year-old woman from Harrisburg will be seen around the globe on OR Live tonight (Wednesday). A word of caution- although there's not much blood, some of the images may be too graphic for the queasy. OR Live, an internet broadcast company chooses leading institutions around the world to highlight different procedures.
(AFX UK Focus) 2007-11-12 15:42 GMT: Allergan, Covidien to market Lap-Band
IRVINE, Calif. (AP) - Allergan Inc., which makes Botox and sells surgical weight-loss devices, said Monday it will co-promote its Lap-Band product with health care products provider Covidien Ltd. The Lap-Band is an adjustable gastric band, a device surgically implanted around the stomach to help severely obese patients lose weight by forcibly limiting food intake. The procedure is an alternative to more invasive gastric bypass surgery, commonly known as stomach stapling. Under the multi-year agreement, which became effective Nov. 9, Covidien will co-promote Allergan's Lap-Band to bariatric and other surgeons in the United States. Pembroke, Bermuda-based Covidien makes medical devices and pharmaceutical products. Covidien's sales representatives will help educate and train surgeons on the Lap-Band procedure, which costs roughly $12,000 to $20,000.
Suicides up after weight-loss surgery
Among people who have undergone so-called bariatric surgery for obesity, death rates are higher than seen among other people of the same age, new research shows. In particular, deaths due to suicide and coronary heart disease are higher than might be expected normally. The study looked at data for all Pennsylvania residents who underwent a bariatric operation such as stomach stapling or gastric bypass between 1995 and 2004. Deaths in these patients were compared with those seen in the general population. A total of 440 deaths were noted after 16 683 weight-loss procedures during the study period, Dr. Lewis H. Kuller, from the University of Pittsburgh, and colleagues report. Male gender and advancing age were both associated with increased death rates, according to the team's report in the Archives of Surgery.
dallasnews.com | Your Health Matters
Bariatric surgeon Wade N. Barker, M.D. and his experienced staff are committed to helping patients take control of their health and improve their lives through weight loss. For obese patients who have been unable to reach a healthy weight through diet and exercise, we offer two highly effective weight loss surgery options: LAPAROSCOPIC GASTRIC BYPASS surgery and LAP BAND® surgery.Both have helped innumerable men and women achievedramatic, long-term results[+more] Vision Correction Surgery Since 1987, noted cornea specialist William A. Boothe, M.D., has brought the world into focus with more than 82,000 LASIK laser vision correction procedures. Dr. Boothe also continues to be the busiest IntraLASIK surgeon in the world, having now performed over 44,000 IntraLASIK procedures.
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