Is weight loss surgery right for me?
We adhere to the NICE Guidelines(National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence). They recommend Gastric Bypass as a treatment option for adults with obesity if:

• you have tried but have failed to achieve or maintain weight loss by other methods.
• you have a BMI of 40 or more. Or 35-40 if you have another significant disease (for example, type 2 diabetes or high blood pressure) that could improve if you lost weight
• you recognise a gastric bypass or band is not a quick cure to obesity and it also requires a long-term commitment from you.

There are so many people advertising weight-loss surgery – how do I choose the right one?
Dugal Heath has been head-hunted by the National Health Service to become consultant bariatric surgeon for the NHS at the Whittington Hospital, so patients  could not be in safer hands.
The Association for the Study of Obesity has expressed concerns that increasing numbers of people are signing up with private cosmetic surgery clinics rather than qualified bariatric specialists, sometimes with catastrophic consequences. Others are becoming "medical tourists" and having surgery performed abroad to save money, sometimes without any follow up.
Whoever you choose to perform your surgery, you should make sure they are not only accredited in general surgery, they should also be a specialist in gastric bypass surgery and have a high success rate in gastric bypass surgery.

Do I need a gastric band or a gastric bypass?
For patients with a BMI greater 40 gastric bypass surgery is usually the treatment of choice. For patients with a BMI less than 40 we usually recommend gastric banding. However, these guidelines are not fixed and selection of the type of surgery should be made after a consultation with Dugal . Very occasionally, he will recommend a sleeve gastrectomy as an initial procedure followed by a gastric bypass.

	Gastric Band	Gastric Bypass
Laparoscopic operation	Yes	Yes
Technical difficulty	Relatively straightforward	Requires advanced laparoscopic skills
Hospital stay	24 hrs	48 hrs
Complications	Uncommon	Uncommon but can be serious
Reversibility	Straightforward	Difficult
Start of weight loss	Minimum of 6 weeks	Starts immediately
Expected weight loss	30-60% of excess weight	70% of excess weight
Failure to lose weight	10%	<1%

What are the risks of gastric bypass surgery?
Like any operation, a gastric bypass does have associated  risks. The main risk is the surgery itself, therefore you should ensure your gastric bypass surgeon is qualified, experienced and has a high success rate in gastric bypass surgery.

Aside from this the most common health risk is nutritional deficiency, so a specific series of vitamin supplements will be recommended to you following your surgery. Initially, gastric bypass surgery may cause “dumping” - this is when food passes too quickly through the stomach and intestines and it is made worse by eating highly refined, high-calorie foods (like sweets).

These risks should be balanced against the long-term health-risks of remaining obese.

Will I need to exercise?
Gastric bypasses offer people a very strong incentive to change, rather than a quick solution to obesity. You will still need to change the foods you eat and make sure you exercise to maintain a healthy weight.

Can I get pregnant after a gastric bypass?
Then your chances of becoming pregnant will actually improve with weight loss. We suggest waiting about 12 months after the operation before trying for a baby. Once your weight has levelled off there will be adequate nutrition available for both of you.

What do I do now?
Call us on 020 7935 1210 for a free information pack or click here to send us an email.