Obesity is an age-old health condition. Many degenerative diseases are directly and indirectly linked to obesity as it is observed in the history of obesity. Today a large number of people that are suffering from morbidly obese go for bariatric weight loss surgery. It is safe and affordable surgery for losing and maintaining their weight. In recent years it gained popularity as an alternative to weight loss diets and a large number of people are turning towards bariatric surgery to decrease their excess weight. Now the doctors and surgeons are using innovative and latest equipment to make the procedure safer.
The history of bariatric surgery is very old and it is started in 1950. A.J. Kremen was the first surgeon to perform bariatric surgery in 1954. It was then called intestinal bypass procedure in which the upper and lower part of the small intestine were linked together to bypass the middle section. Many similar procedures were performed but it shown many complications like dehydration, diarrhea and electrolyte imbalance. Later on in 1966, Dr. Edward E. Mason performed gastric bypass surgery in which he used surgical staples for partitioning the upper stomach. In this way the body takes small amount of food and still feels full. With the innovation they used elastic bands instead of staples but that also stretches after few years. Then the surgeon combined the principles of gastric restrictions and dumping syndrome and developed Roux-en-Y bariatric surgery. In this procedure, the surgeon creates a pouch in the upper stomach with the help of staples and attached it to the small intestine. The Y connection is made in the small bowel region at the end and it is attached to the stomach. This procedure had gain popularity due to less complication.
Patients with class III obesity and class II obesity is recommended for the bariatric surgery. People can go for bariatric weight loss surgery if their body mass index is equal or greater than forty. Now the bariatric surgery has become more advance and perform the surgery laparoscopically. It is safer now and has few complications. From history till now they have developed different types of bariatric surgeries for reducing obesity and maintaining their weight.