January 2016 - Digestive Surgery Clinic

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Arthritis, Obesity and Bariatric Surgery

Posted by Dr. Sarfaraz Jalil Baig

Obese people frequently have knee pain that makes walking painful. This is more common with advancing age. It prevents them from walking, playing sports and enjoying vacations.

Some patients may benefit from medicines and physiotherapy and some may need joint replacement. However, weight loss remains the most important measure for long term relief.

If patients cannot lose weight through dieting, they can be offered bariatric surgery. Even the orthopedicians are recommending it these days.

After bariatric surgery, not only the patients lose significant weight, they start leading an active life because their knee pain is relieved dramatically. Those with diabetes, blood pressure and sleep apnea also have relief from these diseases.

Because of its diverse benefits, bariatric surgery is increasingly becoming popular amongst obese patients with arthritis even in the elderly age group!

Heartburns? A Laparoscopic Surgery Can Give Permanent Relief!

Posted by Dr. Sarfaraz Jalil Baig

1. Heartburns can be a source of great discomfort. Typically, it is brought on by eating spicy food. Many patients also have regurgitation of food from the stomach to the gullet and sometimes mouth. This can be aggravated at night. If left untreated, this may lead to cancer of the food pipe.

2. Many patients can benefit from medicines but in certain situations surgery is the better option:

A. Those who have hiatus hernia (big gap in the partition between chest and abdomen making the stomach enter the chest)
B. Those who want to avoid taking the pills lifelong
C. When medicines are not working
D. Where reflux is causing very distressing

3. Surgery for heartburns and regurgitation (Fundoplication) can be done laparoscopically; hence, it is almost painless, needs one day hospital stay and patients can return to work within 3-5 days.

Snoring, Obesity and How Bariatric Surgery Helps?

Posted by Dr. Sarfaraz Jalil Baig

Most people would like to dismiss their snoring as a normal phenomenon during sleep. They feel it’s the spouses who are the only one affected.

Wrong!

Snoring can be a sign of a bad disease called OSA – Obstructive Sleep Apnea. It is characterized by fatigue, day-time sleepiness and frequent disturbance of sleep at night. It is a dangerous disease since it produces lack of oxygen and accumulation of Carbon Dioxide (CO₂), leading to heart disease and high blood pressure in the long run. Patients with untreated OSA commonly suffer with heart attacks and strokes that have a high fatality.

OSA has a strong association with obesity. Hence the treatment of OSA targets the weight of a person.

In dedicated centers treating OSA, like ours, the following policy is adopted:

If patient is mildly obese (BMI < 35) then treatment comprises of CPAP machine (a device that is applied in the nose and mouth to deliver oxygen during night) or an ENT surgery.

If the patient is moderately or severely obese (BMI > 35), bariatric surgery is strongly recommended.

Bariatric surgery produces dramatic improvement in OSA. Within days of surgery, patients have tremendous benefits in many ways, which are listed as follows:

They sleep better with less awakening in the night.
Snoring is gone, much to the relief of their spouse.
They feel fresh when they wake up in the morning.
The blood pressure is improved.

Because of these reasons, bariatric surgery has become popular for obese patients with OSA throughout the world!

Archive for January 2016