For all methods of bariatric surgery, your surgeon will close the incision using surgical stitches or staples. Your IV and breathing tube will be removed and you will be monitored during a short hospital stay. Pain medications will be administered.
Laparoscopy leaves smaller scars than open surgery and tends to have fewer complications and quicker recovery time. Ninety percent of gastric bypasses are done this way.
Eating After Weight Loss Surgery
For a day or two, you'll drink tiny amounts of clear liquids such as water, fruit juice, and broth. Then come denser liquids like milk, smooth cooked cereal, and pudding. For three to four weeks, you'll eat frequent tiny portions of pureed foods. In the second month, you may eat soft, moist, ground-up foods. Three months after bariatric surgery, you may be back to a regular diet. But, you won’t be able to eat big portions again.
How Much Weight Will You Lose?
Weight loss may be dramatic in some cases -- as much as a pound a day in the first three months. Combination surgery that causes malabsorption and shrinks the stomach produces more weight loss than restriction-only operations. People who have bypass surgery generally lose two-thirds of their excess weight within two years.
Excess skin may need to be removed after rapid weight loss. This requires additional surgery.Risks of Gastric Bypass Surgery
All surgeries carry some risk. For bariatric surgery, the risk of dying is less than 1% and serious complications are rare. To have the best chance of avoiding complications, it's important to go to all your follow-up visits and stick to your prescribed diet and lifestyle plan.
Complications After Surgery
People who undergo bariatric surgery are at risk for complications including:
- Pouch stretching back to stomach's original size
- Vomiting from eating more than the stomach pouch can hold
- The band disintegrating
- Band and staples fall apart, reversing the procedure
- Stomach contents leaking into the abdomen
- Gallstones from excess weight loss
- Nutritional deficiencies and health problems
'Dumping Syndrome'
Gastric bypass surgery also may cause the stomach contents to move too rapidly through the small intestine. Symptoms include nausea, weakness, sweating, faintness, and, occasionally, diarrhea after eating, as well as the inability to eat sweets without becoming extremely weak. To avoid these symptoms, follow the dietary recommendations of your nutritionist.
Deficiencies and Supplements
After surgery, many people have reduced absorption of vitamin B-12, iron, and calcium. The more extensive the surgery, the greater the risk for nutritional deficiencies. Supplements boost your intake of these nutrients and prevent anemia and osteoporosis. Most people will require close monitoring and the lifelong use of special foods and medications.
Adjusting to a New Life
It is common to have many different emotions after weight loss surgery. You may feel happy or excited as you begin to lose weight. But you may also feel overwhelmed or frustrated by the changes that you have to make in your diet, activity, and lifestyle. Talk with your doctor if you have concerns or questions.
