Obesity treatment is recommended when a person’s body mass index (BMI) is 35 and above. The goals of treatment include achieving a healthy weight, preventing or managing obesity-related diseases, improving quality of life and maintaining long-term success. The main strategies in obesity treatment include lifestyle changes, diet, exercise and bariatric surgery.
Bariatric surgery is one of the most effective methods for weight loss in the treatment of obesity. Surgical interventions include different methods such as gastric bypass, gastric sleeve.
What is Obesity Surgery?
Obesity surgery is a surgical procedure to help individuals who are overweight or have obesity problems to lose weight. Obesity surgery is used to treat obesity when other methods of weight loss, such as diet and exercise, do not work or lead to serious health problems.
Surgical Methods in Obesity Treatment
Obesity surgery can be performed using different techniques. These include:
- Sleeve Gastrectomy: It is a procedure to shrink the stomach. The stomach is cut into a tube and reduced in size. In this way, it helps eating less food and feeling satiated faster.
- Gastric Bypass Surgery: The stomach is cut to form a small pouch and reconnected with the intestines. In this way, part of the food passes through the stomach and directly into the intestines, reducing the amount of nutrients absorbed by the body.
- Mini Gastric Bypass Surgery: It is a modified version of gastric bypass surgery. In this surgery, the stomach is reduced into a tube and part of the small intestine is connected to this tube. In this way, some of the food is digested by passing directly into the small intestine, the stomach volume is reduced, allowing the person to eat less food and a feeling of satiety occurs faster.
Each of these procedures works in different ways, but they all have the common goal of aiding weight loss. Which procedure is preferred may vary depending on the patient’s health status, body mass index and other factors.
Non-Surgical Treatment Options in Obesity
Many people who have problems with weight loss often raise the question “is it possible to lose weight without surgery”. Therefore, non-surgical weight loss options are frequently searched for.
Non-surgical treatments are non-surgical options for people who want to fight obesity. These treatments include different approaches such as lifestyle changes, diet, exercise, medication and endoscopic methods. Endoscopic procedures are recommended if the person has difficulty in losing weight with diet and exercise, does not want to undergo surgery or is in the risky group for surgery.
These methods aim to reduce the volume of the stomach using endoscopic instruments without the need for surgery, to prevent the absorption of calories that do not have an effect on the digestive system, or to slow gastric emptying.
Non-surgical treatment options are as follows:
Gastric balloon: The procedure is based on a balloon placed in the stomach, which takes up space in the stomach, helping the person to eat less food and maintain a feeling of satiety for longer.
Ingestible gastric balloon: The mechanism of action is the same as with the classic gastric balloon. Unlike the classic one, this does not require endoscopy as it is in the form of a capsule that can be easily swallowed by the patient.
Stomach botox: It is the process of injecting botulinum toxin into certain parts of the stomach by endoscopic method. Botulinum toxin is a substance that temporarily paralyzes muscles. When injected into the stomach, it can reduce the desire to eat by reducing the activity of stomach muscles. This way, a person can start to eat less and feel satiated faster. However, the effect is more limited in duration.
The effectiveness of non-surgical treatments is generally more limited compared to surgical treatments. However, non-surgical treatments may be an option for people who are not suitable for surgery or who avoid surgery. Before deciding on any obesity treatment option, it is recommended that the patient and doctor work together to determine the most appropriate treatment plan depending on the patient’s lifestyle, health status and other factors.
June 3, 2023
