Gastric Bypass Effective in Controlling Diabetes

According to a report covered by Reuters and published in Archives of Surgery, eight out of every ten patients, who undergo gastric bypass, may be able to stop taking their medication for type-II diabetes after surgery. Gastric bypass has, for years, been considered to be very effective in the fight against obesity related diseases and this report solidifies the benefits of the procedure. Since the vast majority of adult onset diabetes cases are resultant from excess weight, it makes sense that weight loss surgery would be this effective. There is a growing school of thought that bariatric surgery may benefit those who may not be extremely obese, but have type-II diabetes. At the moment insurers largely do not cover the procedure for diabetes resolution only.

According to this report, gastric banding does not offer quite the same diabetes management rate at 63% of patients stopping their diabetes medication. Even so, this procedure offers a great deal of potential.

Of course, weight loss surgery is still major surgery that comes with risks which should be weighed against any disease resolution benefits. Not all patients will be suitable candidates for this surgery. To read the full Reuters article, click here: https://www.reuters.co/article/2011/06/23/us-weight-loss-surgery-idUSTRE75M5R920110623