The Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass surgery is the most popular weight loss surgery within the U.S. WeightWise surgeons are highly trained to perform the Gastric Bypass using the less invasive and safer laparoscopic surgery, unless specific patient medical needs necessitate a different option.
How Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass works
The restriction of food intake as the result of a bypass is done so through the creation of small stomach, also called the stomach pouch, located in the upper stomach. Surgeons create this pouch by dividing the upper stomach with a surgical stapling tool. The new stomach will be very small and can hold only about 15 milliliters, which translates to about two or three bites of food.
Once the bypass is surgically completed, the process of digesting one’s food is slightly changed. When a patient swallows the food, it passes through the esophagus and the new stomach pouch into a short segment of the small intestine called the “Roux limb.” During surgery, this limb is moved from the middle of the abdomen and attached to the new stomach pouch. An important fact about this piece of the small intestine is that it cannot process high calorie foods that contain sugar or some kinds of carbohydrates, for example ice cream or candy. If food with a high concentration of calories is consumed, the Roux limb responds by making the individual feel very ill.
The response of the body against dense caloric foods is called dumping syndrome. Symptoms of this reaction include an increased heart rate, weakness, nausea, vomiting, clammy feeling and even diarrhea. If it does occur, patients should rest for half an hour to an hour. Although dumping syndrome is not dangerous, it feels awful and often helps change habits and reinforces in patients the desire to stay away from these types of foods.
The changed anatomy of the stomach and intestines can be seen in the picture above including the new stomach pouch and the Roux limb. Once the surgeon completes the bypass and before the surgery is finished, something called a blue dye pressure test is performed to ensure there is no leakage from the newly joined sections of the digestive system. To ensure the stomach remains free of leakage, surgeons place a small plastic drain tube near the new stomach that serves to alert staff as to what is occurring around the area. Although this problem is rare for WeightWise surgeons, using this drainage tube helps surgeons detect leaks quickly if they do occur and the tubes are most often removed before the patient returns home.