The incidence of obesity has been incessantly escalating in recent years. According to the latest statistics, almost 50% of the general population has weight problems in China and over 100,000,000 Chinese people are diagnosed type 2 diabetes[1].
An American lady M has been living in Shanghai since 7 years ago. Back then she was a 23-year-old vigorous graduate with a height of 157 cm and a body weight of 70 kg. However, due to lack of physical exercise, she began to gain weight gradually. Before she knew it, her body weight has reached a staggering 130 kg. She realized she had to do something, although her routine body check had ruled out several obesity-related diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and dyslipidemia. She scoured literatures and guidelines for healthy diets and hired a private coach for physical training. Moreover, she also went to the local clinics and used Semaglutide, the high-profile GLP-1 receptor agonist, to help her lose weight. However, her body weight continued to rise after just a brief decline.
Depressed and devastated, M came in touch with the metabolic and bariatric surgery (MBS) team of the Department of General Surgery in Nanfang Hospital. After nearly a month-long consult, she made up her mind to come to Guangzhou and take surgical treatment. At that time, her body weight already added up to 137 kg, with a BMI of 55.6 kg/m2. During her stay, multiple-disciplinary discussion by doctors from the MBS team, Endocrinology Department, Nutrition Department, Sleep Center, Anesthesia Department, Hepatology Department and Plastic Surgery Department, was held to confirm the indications of surgery and reassure the safety of peri-operative settings. M was scheduled for surgery the next day after her arrival. Sleeve gastrectomy was performed successfully and M was capable of walking around without any trouble the first day post-operation.
The metabolic and bariatric surgery (MBS) is an efficacious and sustainable measure to reset the body weight and metabolic conditions altogether. It is estimated that over 70% of excess body weight could be reduced in 1 year post-operation and about 50% of excess body weight loss could still be maintained in 10 years[2]. Chances to cure or alleviate obesity-related diseases, namely diabetes, dyslipidemia, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), are promising. In fact, about 20% of patients remained complete diabetes remission in 7 years post-operation[3] and no longer needed insulin or other anti-diabetic treatment thereafter and had significantly longer life expectancy[4]. Over 80% of patients with OSA slept much better and became far more energetic as their body weight went down to the normal range[5].
The MBS team of Nanfang Hospital has been providing surgical treatment for over 10 years and restored health for many domestic and foreign patients alike and should be an optimal choice for those with weight problems or afflicted by diabetes. In the case of M, for example, she might probably at least reduce 56 kg of her body weight in 1 year as long as she could stick to the diet list and physical training advice provided by the doctors.
Reference
[1] 國家心血管病中心,國家衛(wèi)生健康委組織,中國疾病預(yù)防控制中心,國家癌癥中心. 中國居民營養(yǎng)與慢性病狀況報(bào)告（2020年）[J]. 營養(yǎng)學(xué)報(bào), 2020,42(6):521.
[2] Salminen P, Gronroos S, Helmio M, et al. Effect of Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy vs Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass on Weight Loss, Comorbidities, and Reflux at 10 Years in Adult Patients With Obesity: The SLEEVEPASS Randomized Clinical Trial[J]. JAMA Surg, 2022,157(8):656-666.
[3] Courcoulas A P, Patti M E, Hu B, et al. Long-Term Outcomes of Medical Management vs Bariatric Surgery in Type 2 Diabetes[J]. JAMA, 2024,331(8):654-664.
[4] Syn N L, Cummings D E, Wang L Z, et al. Association of metabolic-bariatric surgery with long-term survival in adults with and without diabetes: a one-stage meta-analysis of matched cohort and prospective controlled studies with 174 772 participants[J]. Lancet, 2021,397(10287):1830-1841.
[5] Peromaa-Haavisto P, Tuomilehto H, Kossi J, et al. Obstructive sleep apnea: the effect of bariatric surgery after 12 months. A prospective multicenter trial[J]. Sleep Med, 2017,35:85-90.
