Gastric Bypass Surgery Complications
Informative details on what kind of complications can arise during and after gastric bypass surgery and their effects.
Gastric bypass is an operation done by patients with big obesity problems. This operation is done with the consent of the family and doctors. It is important to understand that gastric bypass is not always successful and may cause unwanted complications for the patient’s health and life. Complications occur when surgeons commit mistakes or when the patient’s body is making the unwanted complications. Complications are rare yet they still exist in gastric bypass. These are some complications that a patient can accumulate during and after the surgery.
During the surgery, like any kind of surgery that is situated in the body, hemorrhage occurs. This happens when the blood vessels are not properly tied thus letting the blood flow freely inside the abdomen or to the skin. This is a minor type of complication because doctors can easily fix this. Although hemorrhage is a minor complication, it can also become a major problem if not tended to immediately. Hemorrhage can cause internal infection or can cause death to the patient.
After the surgery, the urine tract is altered, and the use of a tube or catheter is necessary to drain the bladder. In rare occasions, this can lead to infections, specifically urinary tract infection. It’s a minor complication that can be treated by medication. There’s no need to stay for another week at the hospital for this.
Most cases of infection in bypass surgery occur when the staples are not placed properly and pulled before healing. This can cause infections inside the body and might trigger other diseases.
A patient can also acquire pneumonia after having gastric bypass. This happens when the infecting organisms travel from the gastro intestinal tract all the way through the lungs. Pneumonia can be prevented by cleaning the gastro intestinal tract before the surgery, by using antibiotics during the operation and by using clean surgical tools.
After the surgery, due to the body’s rapid weight loss, the calorie intake of the patient is lesser than the patient’s body is needing, thus the inactivation of 40% of hair follicles occur causing hair loss to the patient. This is a transient effect where nutrition is less for the body to absorb.
Almost 20% of the patients also undergo another bypass to correct the first due to abdominal hernia. And another 1/3 of the patients develop gallstones while losing weight. This can be fixed by medications given by doctors after the surgery.
After the surgery, the patient may also suffer from nausea and vomiting. The vomiting is due to the sudden constriction of the stomach due to the operation by about 5% to 15% where the connection between the stomach and intestine linings narrows. This is called stomal stenosis. Nausea occurs when the patients starts eating after the bypass.
Iron deficiency is another complication that occurs 30% or more of the time. Patients with iron deficiency may even develop anemia after the bypass.
With the help of the doctors and physicians these complications may not occur after the surgery. Following the procedures given by the perma care physician will help the body recover and adjust to the new body condition.
