What is Gastric Sleeve Surgery?
The goal of gastric sleeve surgery, also known as sleeve gastrectomy, is to reduce the size of your stomach. Typically, laparoscopic surgery can be used to complete the procedure, negating the need for open surgery. Instead, a number of tiny incisions will be made in your belly to allow the surgeon to introduce the surgical tools and a camera that will allow him or her to view inside.
Up to 70% of your stomach will be removed throughout the treatment. Using staples, the remaining piece will be formed into a tube or sleeve. You should be able to lose weight by having a smaller stomach because you’ll feel satisfied after much smaller meals.
How is Gastric Sleeve Made?
Gastric Sleeve involves removing up to 80% of the patient’s stomach. During the procedure, the patient is under anesthesia. That’s why he doesn’t feel anything. 5 small incisions are made in the abdomen of the patient. These incisions are entered with devices. Then the stomach is made smaller by suturing. The rest is removed piece by piece.
Gastric Sleeve Side Effects
Due to the anesthetic and the treatment itself, everyone who has gastric sleeve surgery will have some adverse effects:
- or a few days after the procedure, you’ll feel tired, sore, and bewildered.
- You should be able to control the pain from the surgery wounds with modest medicines. When they heal, you’ll also need to keep them dry and clean.
- After the treatment, you will have multiple tiny scars on your belly. These scars should fade with time.
- When you acclimate to your new diet, especially during the initial days and weeks when it is only liquids and soft meals, you should anticipate feeling exhausted.
- After a sleeve gastrectomy, digestive issues like indigestion, nausea, and food intolerances can occur. Acid reflux is the most typical of these, yet it rarely lasts forever. If you don’t watch what you eat, you could potentially become nutritionally deficient, but this is less likely than with the gastric bypass surgery.
- You’ll probably notice some sagging or loose skin when you lose weight. How much will depend on how elastic your skin is and how quickly you lose weight. Once you’ve reached your target weight, even if it is safe, you might want to think about cosmetic surgery to get it removed if it bothers you.
Gastric Sleeve Less Common Complications
96% of patients will make a full recovery from the procedure without suffering any major problems. Unfortunately, a small percentage will experience some sort of issue. Your doctor will make sure you are aware of the warning signs so you can get assistance if anything is wrong. As long as they are detected immediately, these problems are typically manageable.
Following a sleeve gastrectomy, problems could arise;
- leaks from the area of your stomach that was stapled shut. Before you eat anything, the staple line will be examined with a swallow test and scan, which should minimize the consequences. But, if there is an issue, you might require additional surgery to resolve it.
- the staple line is bleeding. After the procedure, you can have some internal bleeding even though the stomach is still shut. The likelihood of needing more surgery to stop them is extremely slim unless they are significant.
- The surgeon might have to switch to an open surgery if there are any problems during the procedure. Because of this, your abdomen will have a larger surgical wound and a larger scar. However, this is only done when it is medically necessary.
Risks of Gastric Sleeve Surgery
As well as the risks that are unique to the gastric sleeve procedure, there are also some more general complications that can occur with any kind of abdominal surgery:
- Allergic reaction to the anaesthetic
- Heavy bleeding
- Blot clots, which could block blood vessels causing problems like deep vein thrombosis or a pulmonary embolism
- Infections
- Damage to the other organs in your abdomen, like the spleen or bowel
- Bowel obstruction caused by scar tissue or adhesion between the organs
Most of the time, these side effects may be managed during or after the procedure. For instance, you might be given medication to get rid of an infection or have surgery to fix any organ damage. But, there is a slight possibility that you could develop long-term issues or possibly a condition that poses a life-threatening risk. The complications may, in the worst scenario, prove lethal.
Even though these hazards are quite unlikely, it’s crucial that you are informed of them before the treatment. You must be able to decide on your care in an informed manner. You should also be informed of the precautions you can take both before and after the treatment to reduce the dangers.
Should You Have Gastric Sleeve Surgery?
Before deciding to have gastric sleeve surgery, you will have plenty of opportunity to talk with your doctor about the procedure’s risks and potential adverse effects. Your medical history will be taken into account when the doctor provides you with personalized recommendations. For instance, if you have a condition like heart disease or are more likely to produce a blood clot, you may be more susceptible to certain risks. You will also be given suggestions on how to lower the dangers, such as quitting smoking to increase your capacity for healing.
Each surgical operation carries some risk, but the likelihood of major consequences is often low. You will need to consider whether the advantages of weight reduction surgery outweigh the hazards if your doctor says you are healthy enough for the procedure. Although your doctor can assist you, the choice is ultimately yours.
