Posted: 2008-01-09

Obesity Clinic

Introduction

Surgery is currently considered to be the most effective form of reducing weight and maintaining weight loss, and this center is known for its excellence in obesity surgery and laparoscopy.

Among other high-technology procedures, it provides gastric bypass and gastric band surgery.

In the case of jejunal gastric bypass – the Roux Y-type – surgical staples are used to create a small sac in the upper part of the stomach, restricting the amount of food that may be ingested. A portion of the small intestine is isolated in order to retard any mixing with digestive juices, and to reduce alimentary absorption. 

As for the adjustable gastric band, it is placed in the upper part of the stomach, forming a pouch of approximately 20 ml which is then adjusted to close or open, according to the desired effect. This is a reversible operation.

The Obesity Clinic offers the following services and tests:

Evaluation of patient’s general health status
Determining his or her degree of excess weight
Determining his or her healthy target weight
Increasing knowledge-base regarding obesity
Initiating the modification of habitual behaviors
Encouraging an appropriate nutritional plan
Overseeing initial weight loss

Information

Obesity is defined by the World Health Organization as “an excessive accumulation of body fat that may affect health.”

People with problems related to overweight are also overwhelmed with information that in many cases is confusing to them, rather than helpful. The following are the most common questions that arise when it comes to treatment:

Is the surgery for obesity reversible?
All the operations are reversible. However, a new operation is necessary for reversal of the earlier surgery.

Is it possible to become pregnant after the operation?
Yes. Some patients who have had menstrual irregularities and failure to ovulate as a consequence of their obesity, even find that these are corrected when they lose weight.

Is it necessary to take medications following the operation?
Yes. All patients should take multivitamins, and it is also recommended that they take ursodeoxycholic acid (ursodiol) to prevent formation of gallstones, which may appear after rapid weight loss.

They say that hair loss may often accompany weight loss. How can I avoid this?
This can be prevented or reduced by taking vitamins that  contain zinc. Hair will grow again when weight is stabilized.

When will I stop losing weight?
Between 12 and 18 months after the operation, when you may even gain back some pounds.

Will I contract anemia or malnutrition?
Overall, it’s known that three out of ten patients develop anemia if they do not take vitamins following the operation. Interventions which do not reduce intestinal length will not cause malnutrition; good protein intake is important for times when absorption capacity drops.

Staff

Dr. Carlos Benítez Sánchez
Dr. Fernando Aceves Miramontes
Dr. José López Zúñiga
Dr. Rigoberto González Valdez
Bariatric Surgeons
Dr. Edith Jaqueline Bañuelos Contreras
Medical Nutritionist
Ana Lilia Trujillo, B.S.
Psychologist
Dr. Irma Luisa Ceja
Internist

Hours
Monday to Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Saturdays from 8:00 to 2:00 p.m.

Telephones:
52 (33) 38.48.4044