St. Dominic's Bariatric Surgery

Making the Choice For Better Health

Between fifteen and twenty million Americans suffer from morbid obesity, placing their health at serious risk from debilitating diseases. Obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on your health. This excess can reduce your life expectancy and can increase the amount of health ailments and chronic conditions you will experience.

Obesity not only reduces a life by 13 – 20 years, but those who are obese for long periods of time may be diagnosed with illnesses that require constant management like diabetes or congestive heart failure.

Weight loss surgery is not only a way to drop pounds, it is a way to improve your ability to participate in physical and recreational activities, your social and economic opportunity and your overall sense of well-being.

In addition to the weight that can be lost through bariatric surgery solutions, many health conditions can be improved or reversed.

• Diabetes: Improved in 86 percent of patients, complete remission in 77 percent
• Hypertension (high blood pressure): Improved in 78 percent of patients, cured in 62 percent
• Hyperlipidemia (high cholesterol and high triglycerides): Improved in more that 70 percent of patients
• Obstructive Sleep Apnea: Cured in 86 percent of patients
• Cardiovascular Disease: Risk reduced by 82 percent
• Depression: Resolved in over 72 percent of patients
• GERD: Resolved in 77 percent of patients
• Stress Urinary Incontinence: Resolved in 44 to 88 percent of patients
• Venous Stasis Disease: Resolved in 95 percent of patients

Don’t Accept a Life Full of Chronic Illness

Obesity is measured by using the Body Mass Index (BMI). By knowing your height and weight and using a BMI calculator (on the right side of this page) you can find your BMI. You are considered obese if you have a BMI of 30 or more. Severe obesity is defined as having a BMI of more than 35. Morbid obesity constitutes a BMI of 40 or more.

BMI is also important because it is often utilized as one of the key bariatric surgery requirements both for surgeons and for insurance providers. Therefore, knowing your BMI is an important piece of obesity information to have for yourself, and while it’s just an estimate, it’s a useful guideline as you consider your options for weight loss surgery.

If you have tried several times to lose weight and have not been successful, bariatric surgery may be an option.

Bariatric surgery can be thought of as a way to change your size, but it will also change your life. But surgery alone is not the answer to better health. The operation is a catalyst, a launching point for a whole new way of living – and eating.

Bariatric surgery is a big step, and it is important to have the right mindset when you take that step. The surgery will force you to create new eating habits because your stomach will be smaller and you will become fuller faster. As a result, it will be more important than ever to make smart food choices.

All surgery comes with risk factors, but living with morbid obesity can be riskier. So ask yourself if you are ready for a new life – one with reduced chances of serious health related illnesses and without excess body weight.

Bariatric surgery is typically considered either a restrictive procedure that reduces food intake or a malabsorptive procedure that alters digestion.

Bariatric surgery is typically considered either a restrictive procedure that reduces food intake or a malabsorptive procedure that alters digestion.

Restrictive Operations

Restrictive Operations restrict the amount of food a patient can eat at any one time to less than a cup. The surgery involves creating a small pouch at the top of the stomach. Types of restrictive weight loss options include the Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy, LAP-BAND® System and the new REALIZE™ Band.

Malabsorptive Operations

Malabsorptive Operations not only restrict food intake, but also the amount of calories and nutrients the body absorbs by redirecting the digestive process. The most common type of malabsorptive procedure is the Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass.

Your surgeon or bariatric educator will discuss in detail with you what type of bariatric surgery is right for you.

ReShape Weight Loss Balloon

ReShape jump starts your weight loss by placing two connected saline-filled gastric balloons, made of medical-grade silicone, inside your stomach for six months. The weight loss balloon takes up room in your stomach so there’s less space for food and you feel full faster.

Before Surgery

At St. Dominic’s Bariatric Surgery Solution we are committed to providing you clear, thorough information about weight loss options designed to help you make the best decision for your immediate and long-term health. Helping you successfully prepare for weight loss surgery is our top priority.

You can expect to undergo a series of consultations and evaluations. A detailed comprehensive program has been developed to ensure your long-term health and safety pre- and post-surgery.

1. Attend our free information session: Sign up here
2. Confirm Bariatric Surgery Insurance Information
   Be proactive and call your insurance company to ask if bariatric surgery is a covered benefit. Our office will call and verify your benefits to make sure the procedure you are requesting is covered as well.
3. Meet Our Bariatrics Team
   Meet with the surgeon to discuss your medical history and current health status to decide which procedure is right for you.
4. Psychological Evaluation – Every patient will undergo a psychological evaluation from a psychologist.

Tests to expect prior to surgery

Additional tests and studies may be ordered depending on your current health conditions.

Important areas for patients following bariatric surgery

Diet

The modifications made to your gastrointestinal tract will require permanent changes in your eating habits that must be adhered to for successful weight loss. Every patient will be educated extensively on every diet progression post surgery.

Going Back to Work

Utilizing minimally invasive surgery (laparoscopy) has greatly shortened the recovery phase of these procedures. Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Bands (Lap Bands) are now placed mostly on an outpatient basis and patients with office type positions can often return to work after one week. Roux- en- Y Gastric bypass and Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy patients need more time to adapt to their smaller pouches and are very dependent on protein shakes for nutrition. These are not more physically limiting than the Lap Band but do require a bit longer to adapt to a new nutritional regimen and thus usually require at least two weeks before returning to work.

Long-Term Follow- up

Join our team! Our team of surgeons, nurses, dieticians, and supporting staff are here to guide you along the way. It is our mission to help improve your health, improve your quality of life and increase your lifespan. You will have follow-up visits starting at 1 week following surgery, then 4 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, 12 months and then annually. Some Lap Band patients may have to have monthly office visits for band adjustments. It is very important for you to keep these follow up visits. Not only will we be taking measurements and weighting you but also performing routine lab work.

Support Group

The widespread use of support groups has provided bariatric surgery patients an excellent opportunity to discuss their various personal and professional issues. Most learn, for example, that bariatric surgery will not immediately resolve existing emotional issues or heal the years of damage that morbid obesity might have inflicted on their emotional well-being. Support group also gives you the support you might not receive from others like family, co-works, etc.

Support Group Schedule

St. Dominic’s Bariatric support group is held the second Thursday of each month at 6:00 p.m. To contact someone about the monthly topic or to register, please email supportgroupbariatric@stdom.com. Please note this email is not checked on a daily basis.

 Jonathan Ross Adkins, MD

 David Roland Carroll, MD

At St. Dominic’s Bariatric Department, we offer life long follow-up care and education. We have nurses and registered dietitians dedicated to helping our patients with their journey.

When you choose St. Dominic’s you will feel the difference right away. Your unique visit begins with a staff that strives to provide an E3 experience to patients. The St. Dominic’s E3 experience is an Exceptional Experience Everytime. Our caregivers have a wide range of expertise in many fields of discipline. We offer the latest and greatest in technology, techniques and procedures to ensure every patient will have the best possible outcome.

Today considered one of the region’s most comprehensive hospitals, St. Dominic’s boasts outstanding facilities offering a variety of programs and services.

Our programs and services include:

• Cancer screenings and treatment
• Cardiovascular care
• Women’s Health Services
• Health and wellness
• Healthy Weight Advantage

We know that being in a hospital and away from your home can cause a certain amount of anxiety, but while you are at St. Dominic’s we will do everything in our power to put you at ease.

Why do I need a psychological evaluation?

This life changing surgery requires serious thought and our specialists want to ensure you have the support you need to follow through with the commitment. Some patients overeat because their emotions drive them to do so and our specialists want to bring that behavior to light so our patients can be successful after the surgery.

How long does the process take until you have surgery?

There are many factors that go into guiding you through the pathway to surgery. These factors: insurance requirements, health conditions, and making sure we have thoroughly evaluated any underlying issues that were not addressed before deciding to have bariatric surgery. Everyone is different so therefore this answer is different for everyone.

How safe is the operation?

Like every operation, there is a risk. Because our patients already have health-related problems, there is an increased risk of complications. However, our team makes sure they thoroughly screen you to make sure that there are no surprises on the operating table. If we feel that it is not safe to operate on you, we will not proceed. However we will gladly work with you in order for you to be eligible for the operation. Your team will be behind you 100% before, during, and after the surgery.

What can I do about extra skin and stretch marks?

Many of our patients opt for plastic surgery, but we recommend you wait until your weight loss has “plateaued” or stopped before undergoing plastic surgery.

Will I have to change my lifestyle?

Research shows that lifestyle changes are necessary for both weight loss AND maintenance of weight loss. We at the St. Dominic’s Bariatric Surgery Solution want you to not only take the weight off, we want you to keep it off, so yes, some lifestyle changes will need to happen.

At 400 pounds, I found myself sinking in the quicksand of excess weight due to my unhealthy relationship with food. I knew that I needed a miracle. That miracle came via a precious soul named DeeDee Anderson, Bariatrics Coordinator at St. Dominic Hospital. She helped put my fears to rest and helped change my life. St. Dominic’s Bariatric Surgery Solutions gave me the tools I needed to relieve my body of the physical manifestations from years of compulsive overeating. With that release, came a new sense of self worth and gratitude for life beyond my wildest dreams.

“Normal” sized people often take for granted things like tying their shoes or sitting comfortably in movie theater seats. Those things along with many others are now part of my reality thanks to this program! I refer to Dr. David Carroll as one of my angels. On April 9, 2014, Dr. Carroll, along with guidance from my higher power gave me a second birthday.

Today I weigh 145 pounds! Words cannot express how grateful I am to St. Dominic’s Bariatric Solutions. I encourage anyone who is a prisoner in their own body because of excess weight to reach out to this program. Today, I look forward to what my journey brings me! I am living proof that nothing tastes as good as being healthy feels!

After being overweight for many years and trying every diet plan and exercise class that I could possibly do, I decided to go to an information session with St. Dominic’s Bariatric Solutions. The session answered a lot of questions and concerns that I had and I knew this was the answer for me. The bariatric team advised me of my insurance benefits and gave me a step by step guide of requirements that I needed to complete, including pre-surgical testing and nutritional counseling.

St Dominic’s Bariatric Solutions team offered great support and helped answer any additional questions. They truly cared and wanted me to be successful with my weight loss surgery in every aspect.

After surgery, they enrolled me in a monthly support group. They offered recipes and answered questions on “what to expect now”.
This has been the best decision that I’ve made in regards to my health. I have no regrets at all and would absolutely do it again without question. My energy is great and the joint pain I had before from carrying around all the extra weight is gone. I finally feel like I have my life back. I am forever grateful to the St. Dominic’s Bariatrics Solutions team for helping and supporting me in this life changing journey.