Weight loss surgery has become an effective tool in treating obesity, especially in people who have not benefitted from diet and exercise. Along with reduced weight – about 30 percent on average – there is improved health for many who undergo this surgery: lowered blood pressure, reduced sleep apnea and even the reduction or complete disappearance of Type 2 diabetes.
But for about 10 percent of those undergoing bariatric surgery these health benefits – including actual weight loss – don’t happen.
Is there a way that science can predict in advance which weight loss surgery candidates will best benefit from the procedure – and those who may not? Research being done at Hartford HealthCare may provide a clue:
GUESTS:
Dr. Pavlos Papasavas, Co-director, Bariatric Surgery, Hartford Hospital
Dr. Godfrey Pearlson, Director, Olin Neuropsychiatry Research Center, Hartford Hospital’s Institute of Living.
Dr. Mark Alberts, Physician-in-chief, Hartford HealthCare Ayer Neuroscience Institute
Interested in surgical weight loss? Learn more here.