As obesity continues to increase in the West weight loss surgery is becoming an everyday type of surgery in many medical facilities. The sleeve gastrectomy is a restrictive form of weight loss surgery in which approximately 85 percent of the stomach is surgically removed leaving a sleeve shaped stomach with a substantially reduced capacity of somewhere between 60 and 150 cc. As distinct from many other types of obesity surgery, the outlet valve and the nerves to the stomach remain intact and, while the stomach is considerably reduced in size, its function is preserved. Again, unlike other types of bariatric surgery like the classical Roux-en-Y gastric bypass the sleeve gastrectomy is not reversible. As the newly created stomach functions as normal there are fewer restrictions on the foods which patients can consume following surgery, even if the amount of food consumed will be very much reduced. This is viewed by a lot of patients as one of the chief advantages of the sleeve gastrectomy, as well as the fact that the removal of the greater part of the stomach also results in the essential elimination of the hormones that are produced within the stomach and which stimulate hunger. Possibly the greatest advantage of the sleeve gastrectomy is to be found in the fact that it does not bypass the intestines and patients do not therefore experience the complications of bypass including intestinal obstruction, anemia, osteoporosis and protein deficiency. It also makes it a suitable type of surgery for individuals who are already suffering from anemia, Crohn's disease and various other conditions that would put them at high risk for surgery involving intestinal bypass. Lastly, it is one of of only a few types of weight loss surgery which can be done laparoscopically in patients who are particularly obese. Probably the chief disadvantage of the vertical sleeve gastrectomy is that it does not always lead to the weight loss which patients want and may result in weight regain in the longer term. This is of course true of any type of purely restrictive weight loss surgery though it is possibly particularly true of the vertical gastrectomy. As the operation requires stapling of the stomach individuals do run the risk of leakage and other complications which are directly related to stapling. In addition, as is the case with any surgery, individuals are at risk from complications including small bowel obstruction, post-surgical bleeding, pneumonia and even death. The chances of encountering any of these complications is luckily extremely small and is in the region of about 0.5 and 1%. This said, the chance of dying as a result of this type of operation at approximately 0 .25% is extremely small. As a general rule the vertical sleeve gastrectomy is best suited to individuals who are either especially overweight or whose health would rule out other types of bariatric surgery. In the case of the former the vertical sleeve gastrectomy would normally form the first of a two-part plan of weight loss, with additional surgery being performed once the individual's weight has dropped sufficiently to permit other types of weight loss surgery to come in to play.
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