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Bariatric Surgery

Weight & Nutrition

Making the Choice for Better Health

If you are 100 pounds or more over your ideal weight, you suffer from morbid obesity, the fastest growing health threat in America. Not only does excess weight prohibit you from enjoying a full life, but the endless cycle of dieting also often results in frustration as the unwanted pounds return. You may already be aware of the ways being overweight threatens your health. Although diet, exercise and lifestyle changes are preferred choices for arriving at a healthy weight, there are some people for whom surgery is the answer.

Between 15 and 20 million Americans suffer from morbid obesity, placing their health at serious risk from debilitating diseases. Obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on your health. This excess can reduce your life expectancy and can increase the number of health ailments and chronic conditions you will experience.

Obesity not only reduces life by 13 to 20 years, but those who are obese for long periods of time may be diagnosed with illnesses that require constant management such as diabetes or congestive heart failure.

Weight loss surgery is not only a way to drop pounds, but it is also a way to improve your ability to participate in physical and recreational activities, your social and economic opportunity, and your overall sense of well-being.

In addition to the weight that can be lost through bariatric surgery solutions, many health conditions can be improved or reversed.

  • Diabetes: Improved in 86 percent of patients, complete remission in 77 percent
  • Hypertension (high blood pressure): Improved in 78 percent of patients, cured in 62 percent
  • Hyperlipidemia (high cholesterol and high triglycerides): Improved in more than 70 percent of patients
  • Obstructive Sleep Apnea: Cured in 86 percent of patients
  • Cardiovascular Disease: Risk reduced by 82 percent
  • Depression: Resolved in over 72 percent of patients
  • GERD: Resolved in 77 percent of patients
  • Stress Urinary Incontinence: Resolved in 44 to 88 percent of patients
  • Venous Stasis Disease: Resolved in 95 percent of patients
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Bariatric Surgery Locations Near You

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Types of Bariatric Surgery

Each patient's needs are different. That's why we offer a wide range of bariatric surgical procedures. While all these options have been proven effective, only your doctor can tell you which surgery may be right for you. Bariatric surgery is typically considered either a restrictive procedure that reduces food intake or a malabsorptive procedure that alters digestion.

Your surgeon or bariatric educator will discuss in detail with you what type of bariatric surgery is right for you.

Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy

A sleeve gastrectomy is a procedure in which up to two-thirds of the stomach is surgically removed. It greatly reduces the amount of food that can be eaten but does not decrease the absorption of nutrients or allow food to bypass your intestines. Patients who have a sleeve gastrectomy feel full quickly after eating a small amount of food. They may also experience a decrease in appetite since the production of the “appetite hormone,” ghrelin, is reduced.

Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass

In this procedure, a large portion of the stomach is closed off, restricting the amount that can be eaten at one time. Additionally, the small intestine is cut below the duodenum and reattached to the new smaller stomach pouch. This leaves a shortened path for food to travel through, which decreases the amount of nutrients and calories that can be absorbed by your body. This surgery is beneficial for diabetes and reflux control.

Duodenal Switch

The duodenal switch procedure, also known as a biliopancreatic diversion, DS or BPD-DS, combines both restriction and malabsorption methods to aid patients in weight loss and accounts for about 20,000 procedures performed annually in the United States. With this procedure, your surgeon will reduce the size of your stomach by up to 85 percent. The duodenum is then connected to the lower part of the small intestine. The food you eat ultimately bypasses much of the small intestine, which results in fewer calories absorbed and eventual weight loss. Patients will lose the most weight with this procedure. The BPD-DS is also used as a revisional surgery for inadequate weight loss.

ReShape Weight Loss Balloon

ReShape jump starts your weight loss by placing two connected saline-filled gastric balloons, made of medical-grade silicone, inside your stomach for six months. The weight loss balloon takes up room in your stomach so there’s less space for food and you feel full faster.

FAQs About Bariatric Surgery

If you’re considering bariatric surgery, you may have a lot of questions. Here are answers to some of the most frequently asked. Use this BMI calculator to learn about your Body Mass index.

Request a Consultation in Northeast Louisiana

Complete this form or call (318) 966-1402 to make an appointment for your bariatric consultation today. It could be the best decision you have ever made!

St. Francis Medical Center Bariatric Surgery Consultation Form

Our Accreditations

American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery logoOur Lady of the Lake is a Comprehensive Center with the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement Program (MBSAQIP), a joint program of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) and the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS). Our Lady of the Lake has held this accreditation since 2010. Accreditation verifies that the bariatric surgery program at Our Lady of the Lake meets the highest standards for patient safety and quality of care.

St. Francis Medical Center has received full accreditation as a comprehensive bariatric facility by the new Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement Program (MBSAQIP). MBSAQIP accreditation signifies that St. Francis Medical Center has demonstrated a commitment to delivering the highest quality of care for bariatric surgery patients.

St. Francis Medical Center has been recognized by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana as one of the nation's first hospitals to receive a Blue Distinction® Center+ designation in the area of Bariatric Surgery for Gastric Stapling. We have also received a Blue Distinction® Center designation in the area of Bariatric Surgery for Gastric Banding.

Blue Distinction Centers (BDC) are nationally designated healthcare facilities that meet overall quality measures for patient safety and outcomes, developed with input from the medical community. Blue Distinction Centers+ (BDC+) also meet cost measures that address consumers’ need for affordable healthcare. To receive a Blue Distinction Center+ for Bariatric Surgery designation, a healthcare facility must demonstrate success in meeting patient safety as well as bariatric-specific quality measures, including complications and readmissions. A healthcare facility must also have earned national accreditations at both the facility level and the bariatric care-specific level, as well as demonstrate better cost efficiency relative to its peers.

Blue Distinction CenterResearch shows that facilities designated as Blue Distinction Centers+ demonstrate better quality and improved outcomes for patients compared with their peers. On average, Blue Distinction Centers+ are also 20 percent or more cost efficient than non-BDC+ designated healthcare facilities. Bariatric surgeries are among the most common elective surgeries in the U.S., which provides a significant opportunity to improve quality and efficiency within the healthcare system.

There were 179,000 bariatric surgeries performed in 2013, according to the American Society of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, and the average cost is more than $28,000 per episode, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association. Furthermore, it is estimated that 72 million Americans are obese and 24 million suffer from morbid obesity, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The estimated annual healthcare costs of obesity-related illnesses are $190.2 billion, or nearly 21 percent of annual medical spending in the U.S., according to the Journal of Health Economics.

St. Francis Medical Center has been recognized as a United Healthcare Center of Excellence for Bariatric Surgery.

Bariatric Surgery Support Groups

Our groups provide a supportive and educational community where patients feel comfortable to share their weight loss journey. Each gathering will have a topic which includes, but is not limited to dietary changes, meal planning exercise and fitness, goal setting and recipe swaps.

Support Group in Lafayette

Our Lady of Lourdes Health

Support Group in Baton Rouge

Metamor

More About Weight & Nutrition Services

Our health system offers a full range of weight loss options, both surgical and non-surgical, to treat obesity.

Learn more