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Bariatric Surgery Emerging as Acceptable Treatment for Type 2 Diabetes

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Bariatric Surgery Emerging as Acceptable Treatment for Type 2 Diabetes

Bariatric surgery may hold the key to successfully treating Type 2 diabetes, by ultimately reducing or even eliminating the numerous medications taken by people with this disease.

Until now, weight loss surgery has not been recommended as an appropriate therapy for people with Type 2 diabetes and obesity.

Research has shown that there has been a stunning rise in the occurrence of Type 2 diabetes around the globe, which has created an urgent need for expert advice on the use of bariatric surgery to treat this disease.

In fact, a major global health issue is emerging due to the widespread prevalence of diabetes and obesity in the world. It is estimated that 285 million people worldwide have Type 2 diabetes, and that number is expected to rise to 438 billion by 2030, with another 500 million people at risk globally.

Bariatric Surgery Recommendation for Type 2 Diabetes

Researchers have specific recommendations for the use of bariatric surgery as a treatment for Type 2 diabetes. Surgery should be considered an option only for those who have Type 2 diabetes with a body mass index (BMI) of 35 or higher; and it should be viewed as an alternative form of treatment for people who have a BMI of 30-35 but who can’t control their disease sufficiently with medication, particularly if they have other major health issues such as cardiovascular ailments.

Which Surgery Is Best for Type 2 Diabetes

The research findings prove that various kinds of bariatric surgery done on the gastrointestinal tract have shown to effectively reduce the effects of diabetes in severely obese patients; in fact, weight loss surgery can normalize blood sugar levels and reduce or eliminate the need for expensive medications needed to treat Type 2 diabetes. Ultimately, bariatric surgery can be viewed as a cost-effective approach to treating this illness.
It was emphasized that while no single

type of bariatric surgery would be best for this purpose, the options should be limited to those procedures which have a proven track record of excellence, rather than experimental procedures. Among the currently accepted types of weight loss surgery are the Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Banding, the Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass, the Sleeve GastrectomyBiliopancreatic Diversion (BDP), and the BDP with Duodenal Switch.

It was also noted that as with all types of surgery, there are risks and complications associated with bariatric surgery for Type 2 diabetes treatment. Further, there are few research findings to indicate which type of bariatric procedure would be the best match for individual Type 2 diabetes patients. However, they said there is a particular lack of short- and long-term data to support the use of the Sleeve Gastrectomy; and there are various health concerns related to the Biliopancreatic Diversion and BDP with Duodenal Switch.

Ultimately, it is becoming clear that the current recommendations to alter lifestyle and medical methods are frequently ineffective and do not significantly help to manage Type 2 diabetes in many patients. This means that surgical intervention can be considered as an option – not a last resort – to other medical therapy for treating Type 2 diabetes.