Obese Seniors Can Benefit from Gastric Bypass Surgery
29th Sep 2005, 18:58 GMT
Current research is showing that gastric-bypass surgery for severe obesity, also referred to as bariatric surgery, is safe for older patients. A recent study from Columbia University's Center for Obesity Surgery in New York found that patients over the age of 60 got the same benefits from weight-loss surgery and had no worse postoperative complications than younger people who underwent the same surgery. A similar study involving 27 gastric-bypass patients aged 65 and older who had surgery at the University of South Florida and the University of Miami showed the procedure produced good results and improved quality of life with about the same rate of mortality and complications as seniors who have heart-bypass and hip replacement surgery. Quoted by the Associated Press, Dr. Michael Murr, a bariatric surgeon at the University of South Florida summed up the new research findings regarding the surgery: "We know it corrects the diabetes, it corrects the hypertension, it takes away the sleep apnea, it fixes the heartburn reflux, it makes their knees and joints last longer." Read Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments