What is it?
This major surgery reduces the stomach size of an obese patient; three basic methods can bring about the weight loss. The stomach is restricted by using bands or staples, which is made malabsorptive, causing most nutrients from food to pass through the body, or a combination of restriction and malabsorptive techniques.

Restrictive operations include stomach banding, in which an elastic band is put around the stomach, and stapling, which creates a small food pouch. Surgeons use major procedures to reroute the intestines including the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RGB), currently the most common procedure used in U.S. weight loss surgery. A more complicated, combined procedure is known as the Biliopancreatic Diversion (BPD). Some surgeons reduce possible risk by performing laparoscopic surgery, a technique which passes slender, surgical instruments through one or more small incisions. That is in contrast to the “open” method in which the surgeon makes much larger incisions.

Recovery time:
Most patients slowly lose about half of their excess weight in the first year after the operation, usually continuing to lose weight for 18 to 24 months after the various procedures.