Obesity is one of the most significant and rapidly growing health problems in the Canaries. This pathology affects around 18% of the Canarian population and is causes numerous diseases that lead to the premature death of thousands of people. That is the reason why obesity treatments like stomach reduction are more and more frequent in Tenerife and in the rest of the archipelago. In this post we will share some insights into these types of treatments and how they can improve the health of the population.
Surgical treatments of obesity
Before planning any obesity treatment it is important to turn to a specialized center in order to diagnose, study and treat the obesity in the most adequate way. A specialist will carry out a personal interview with the patient to get to know their clinical history, the medical history of their family, possible pathologies, etc.
After the interview a very detailed study of the patient’s obesity will be carried out. It includes the study of the body composition, where the body fat levels, levels of visceral fat on the internal organs, water, and the body mass index (BMI) are measured.
A digestion specialist will determine what the best treatment course is for the patient and will give a very detailed explanation of the treatment course to the patient. Amongst the possible treatments, surgical intervention is one of the most popular as it has been proven to be effective with achieving healthy and long-term weight loss.
One of the surgical weight loss procedures is bariatric surgery or a laparoscopic surgery for obesity. We will discuss three types of this surgery and it is important to mention that all of them are definitive and they provide long-lasting results.
All these treatments are designed for patients with obesity class 1, 2 and 3, including morbid obesity. These are invasive treatments that provide a significant weight loss. All of these procedures are carried out laparoscopically, meaning that they are minimally invasive and the risk of complications is also minimal. There are various bariatric surgery procedures, but the most common and efficient ones are the following:
- Sleeve Gastrectomy or the sleeve. This procedure is performed by removing approximately 70-80% of the stomach. The remaining stomach resembles a tubular pouch or a sleeve. The small size of the stomach helps to significantly reduce the amount of food that can be consumed, thus the patient can lose weight rapidly and, what is more important, this procedure allows to maintain a healthy weight in the long-term.
- Gastric bypass. This is a more aggressive method than the previous one. During this procedure the stomach is reduced creating a pouch. And at the same time the small intestine is also reduced, restricting not only the amount of food and nutrients consumed, but also reducing the appetite and increasing the satiety.
- Gastric band. This procedure is also designed to reduce the size of the stomach. It involves an adjustable band or a ring that is placed around the upper portion of the stomach. It limits the amount of food reaching the stomach.
Stomach reduction in Tenerife: Where to have it done?
First and foremost, before selecting the obesity treatment, you must make sure that the selected procedure will be carried out by a medical specialist. Quite often obesity is being treated by non-professionals, and for that reason many patients end up gaining a lot more weight back, or they do not achieve the desired results at all.
At THIS we provide Bariatric Surgery Services at the specialized clinic Obesidad Tenerife. This is a specialized medical center for treating obesity, led by digestive surgeon Dr. Iván Arteaga.
Apart from the various obesity treatments on offer, Dr. Arteaga’s clinic provides surgical treatment for type 2 diabetes. This procedure is carried out through metabolic surgery or a metabolic gastric bypass, a novelty treatment for this pathology.
