Obese people who undergo gastric bypass lose weight faster – and keep it off longer – than those who go for gastric banding, according to a new study of the two surgical procedures.
The Swiss study, published in the Archives of Surgery, involved more than 400 patients who underwent the procedures, which both seek to limit how much food a patient’s stomach can hold.
After a six-year period, researchers found patients who had gastric bypass did "significantly better" than who received a gastric band, according to researchers.
“Roux-en-Y gastric bypass is associated with better weight loss, resulting in a better correction of some comorbidities than [banding, at the price of a higher early complication rate,” they wrote.
“This difference, however, is largely compensated by the much higher long-term complication and reoperation rates seen after [banding]”.
About 200,000 Americans undergo surgical procedures to shrink their stomachs each year – through gastric bypass or banding.
In gastric-bypass surgery, surgeons reduce the size of the stomach attach it to the middle of the small intestine, bypassing a section of the intestine and limiting calorie absorption to help patients lose weight.
In gastric banding, doctors place a band around the top part of the stomach.