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Complications of Gastric Bypass Surgery (Part A)

For individuals who struggle with extreme obesity, surgery to lose the weight may be the best option. With any type of surgery there are some inherent risks; however, if you have chosen to undergo gastric bypass surgery and experienced post-surgery gastric bypass complications, you may have a medical malpractice claim.

Overview of Gastric Bypass Surgery

Gastric bypass surgery is one of most common type of weight loss surgery currently preformed. It reduces the size of the stomach, which helps to reduce the amount of food an individual can eat. The surgery also causes food to bypass part of the small intestine, which causes fewer calories to be absorbed. Both of these factors lead to weight loss. Roux-en-Y is the most common form of gastric bypass surgery.

While many individuals have been helped by this type of surgical procedure, there is always the risk of a gastric bypass complication. Unfortunately they do happen and can lead to further health complications or the need to have additional surgery performed in order to correct the issue.

Gastric Bypass Complications

Some of the complications that have resulted from gastric bypass surgery include:

• Ulcers - occur in about 5 to 15% of patients
• Osteoporosis
• Malnutrition - about 30% of patients experience deficiencies in vitamin B12 and iron;
• Abdominal Hernia;
• Gallstones;
• Anemia;
• Stomach Leakage - which goes into the abdominal cavity;
• "Dumping" Syndrome - contents of the stomach are "dumped" or move rapidly through the small intestine;
• Infection - sometimes in the incision;
• Stomal stenosis - 5 to 15% of patient's connection between the intestines and stomach is too narrow;
• Blood Clot - typically in the lung;
• Glucose Levels - glucose (blood sugar) may begin to erratically change; and
• Abdominal Pain/Diarrhea - caused by malabsorption of nutrients

Gastric bypass complications can lead to serious health problems.

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