Is Gastric Bypass for Teens Safe?

Obesity is a difficult disease to overcome and coping with it can become even tougher when it occurs in adolescence.  When diets don’t seem to be working, you may wonder if gastric bypass for teens is a safe option to try.  After all, this isn’t a procedure that should be taken lightly.  It is a serious surgery that comes with the risk of several forms of complications throughout the postoperative period.

That said, recent reports from scientists who have conducted data analyses on the outcomes of gastric bypass for teens have determined that the risks faced by adolescents are not considerably different from those of adults having the same procedure.  These findings were published within the Teen-Longitudinal Assessment of Bariatric Surgery (Teen-LABS) study.  The insight provided through this research examined the metabolic characteristics of adolescents who were obesity patients.  It also offered a more complete understanding of the safety of this type of surgery among patients within that age group.

The lead author of the study was Dr. Thomas Inge from Ohio’s Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center.  Dr. Inge explained that people who are currently seeking gastric bypass for teens are typically in a weight range that is about three times greater than what would be considered to be healthy for an individual at that age.  This means that it isn’t a procedure that is being sought by people who are just slightly overweight.  These are individuals who are extremely overweight and who are being placed at a heightened risk of a range of other medical conditions as a result of their excessive weight.

As the surgery, itself, is typically considered to be quite safe, it means that the risk associated with the procedure is often notably lower than the risk connected with remaining at the level of obesity that has been reached by these adolescents.  According to Dr. Inge, over 90 percent of the teens who have the surgery do not suffer from any major surgical complications as a result.  The nature and frequency of complications was quite comparable to those experienced by adults who have had the same surgery.  Dr. Inge called this “reassuring.”

That study was published in the online version of the JAMA Pediatrics journal.  Understanding whether or not this obesity treatment option is safe for adolescents is important as between 4 and 7 percent of teens across the United States are considered to be severely obese. 

Obesity is a difficult disease to overcome and coping with it can become even tougher when it occurs in adolescence.  When diets don’t seem to be working, you may wonder if gastric bypass for teens is a safe option to try.  After all, this isn’t a procedure that should be taken lightly.  It is a serious surgery that comes with the risk of several forms of complications throughout the postoperative period.

That said, recent reports from scientists who have conducted data analyses on the outcomes of gastric bypass for teens have determined that the risks faced by adolescents are not considerably different from those of adults having the same procedure.  These findings were published within the Teen-Longitudinal Assessment of Bariatric Surgery (Teen-LABS) study.  The insight provided through this research examined the metabolic characteristics of adolescents who were obesity patients.  It also offered a more complete understanding of the safety of this type of surgery among patients within that age group.

The lead author of the study was Dr. Thomas Inge from Ohio’s Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center.  Dr. Inge explained that people who are currently seeking gastric bypass for teens are typically in a weight range that is about three times greater than what would be considered to be healthy for an individual at that age.  This means that it isn’t a procedure that is being sought by people who are just slightly overweight.  These are individuals who are extremely overweight and who are being placed at a heightened risk of a range of other medical conditions as a result of their excessive weight.

As the surgery, itself, is typically considered to be quite safe, it means that the risk associated with the procedure is often notably lower than the risk connected with remaining at the level of obesity that has been reached by these adolescents.  According to Dr. Inge, over 90 percent of the teens who have the surgery do not suffer from any major surgical complications as a result.  The nature and frequency of complications was quite comparable to those experienced by adults who have had the same surgery.  Dr. Inge called this “reassuring.”

That study was published in the online version of the JAMA Pediatrics journal.  Understanding whether or not this obesity treatment option is safe for adolescents is important as between 4 and 7 percent of teens across the United States are considered to be severely obese.