Teenagers and bariatrics

In today’s lifestyle, obesity is on the rise, be it for little time for exercise, poor nutrition choices (fast and processed food, high fat intake), among others. Many persons are being affected by this. One demographic that suffers greatly from this condition are teenagers. Approximately 12.5 million children and adolescents ages 2-19 suffer from obesity.

Risks

As with any surgery, risks are inherent, although most of them are minor and avoidable, which include:

  • Bleeding
  • Infection of the wounds
  • Nausea
  • Vomiting
  • Vitamin deficiencies
  • General weakness

The main condition teenagers present that can cause readmission to the hospital is dehydration (around 15%), due to the fact that at first patients have a hard time measuring how much liquid they can intake, or at times it’s because inflammation can occur. It’s also related to nausea and vomiting, that can cause intolerance to oral liquids.

Important advise

More importantly, it’s important for the patient to understand what the procedure entails. Bariatric surgery in teens can be a very safe procedure, but it’s very important for patients to learn to make healthy choices. Understand that bariatric surgery is a tool that will help them achieve weight loss goals to better quality life and reduce comorbidities.

 

Reference:

https://weightloss.clevelandclinic.org/bsurgeryadolesandteen.aspx


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OCC’s epidemiologist is closely monitoring the COVID-19 status and is actively issuing updates as they are available. The Centers for Disease Control and the World Health Organization are the most trusted sources online.  While the CDC has announced new mask protocols for vaccinated individuals, there will be no changes for our office protocols for patients, guests, and staff members as the announcement does not apply to hospitals or medical facilities. Masks are still a requirement for all patients, guests and staff at our facility.

As we reinitiate weight loss surgery, we are constantly adapting and installing new and updated safety measures.

Weight loss surgery is medically necessary.

Bariatric Surgery and the clash of two pandemics.   

Major metabolic and bariatric surgery Societies and colleges globally are now calling for the safe resumption of bariatric and metabolic surgery before the COVID-19 pandemic is declared over. 

The sooner bariatric surgery can be safely performed, the quicker obesity, type 2 diabetes, and other diseases can be reduced or resolved as they are not only chronic they are also progressive.  Obesity is also linked to more than 40 diseases including type 2 diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, stroke, sleep apnea, osteoarthritis, and at least 13 different types of cancer.

A recent statement from the ASMBS says “Before COVID-19 began, it was clear that patients with obesity were ‘safer through surgery.’ In the era of COVID-19, ‘safer through surgery’ for patients with obesity may prove to be even more important than before.” Obesity and Metabolic syndrome have been identified as an independent risk factor for adverse outcomes including death among COVID-19 patients.

See here for full COVID-19 update. 

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