|
Duke University researchers have developed a new scoring system
that they believe can help guide patient decisions regarding
gastric bypass surgery.
The five-point scale includes factors that
may increase the risk someone will die following the procedure.
The scale was based on a study of gastric bypass outcomes collected
from 2,075 patients who had the procedure at Virginia Commonwealth
University between 1995 and 2004. Thirty-one patients died
within three months of the operation, for a mortality rate
of 1.5 percent. The analysis linked a higher risk of death
to:
- A body mass index over 50. (Normal BMI is 18.5-25)
- Gender. The authors note men are at higher risk for a
host of medical problems including high blood pressure,
diabetes, and metabolic disorder, which could impact survival
rates
- High blood pressure
- Risk factors for a pulmonary embolism (blood clot to
the lungs)
- Advanced age. People over age 45 are known to have a
higher mortality rate following the surgery
Each factor in the scale is worth one point. Three deaths
were noted among the 957 patients scoring between 0-1, for
a mortality rate of 0.31 percent. No deaths were recorded
among the 356 scoring 0. Among the 999 patients scoring between
2-3, there were 19 deaths, for a mortality rate of 1.91 percent.
Among the 119 patients scoring between four and five, there
were nine deaths, for a mortality rate of 7.56 percent.
Gastric bypass surgery may not be a good idea. "Many
people see gastric bypass surgery as an option to use only
when all other approaches to weight
loss have failed," says study author Eric DeMaria,
M.D.
SOURCE: Presented at the American Society
|
