– patients report significant weight loss after surgery

THE Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) on Wednesday reported on the number of successes that it has had in performing bariatric surgeries here.

Bariatric surgery, according to the Mayo Clinic, comprises gastric bypass and other weight-loss procedures involving changing the digestive system to assist an individual in losing weight.

During a press briefing on Wednesday at the GPHC, the team of doctors who play an integral role in the bariatric department explained the procedure and highlighted several successful surgeries that have already been done, even as it was noted that there is currently a waiting list for persons who want to have the procedure done.

The hospital in February of last year conducted the first successful surgery with the support of the administration, while it was noted that it was previously done using an open method at a private institution. The GPHC now conducts the procedure using the less invasive laparoscopic method.

Consultant for General and advanced laparoscopic surgery, Dr Hemraj Ramcharran, told members of the media that for someone to qualify for the surgery, their Body Mass Index (BMI) has to be 40 and above.

He explained that after the surgery, the stomach is made smaller and is a quarter of the actual size, so as a result, those persons will only be able to consume significantly less food than they did before.

Immediately post-op, they will be kept on a liquid diet and subsequently graduate back to solid foods just around three months after surgery.

“So, about three months after surgery they’re back on a normal diet, I mean normal foods, but of course, it is in smaller quantities. So, it is less food and we also work with them on eating healthier,” Dr Ramcharran said.

According to Dr Jagnanand Ramnarine, over some 50 percent of Guyanese are obese, according to World Health Organisation statistics and the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated this.

However, when asked how can persons access this service, he indicated that throughout the country there are primary health facilities such as health centres and polyclinics and a number of patients will have some sort of comorbidities such as hypertension or diabetes, among other things.

He added that in the ideal case they would visit these centres and the doctors there would refer them to the GPHC’s bariatric department to benefit from this surgery.

In this way, Dr Ramnarine said they could not catch all people who may need the surgery; however, he added that many patients have already come without referrals after hearing about the procedure through other means.

He also stated that they also receive patients from orthopaedic doctors who would be referred for weight loss before joint replacement procedures are done.

Meanwhile, one patient who had a successful operation, Sharon Stevenson, told members of the media that she was referred to the clinic after having issues with her feet, which caused her pain when walking.

It was then she noted she will do the surgery and came out of the procedure healthier than before. She said that prior to the operation, she was hypertensive and later diabetic and was considered a high-risk patient for the operation. As it is right now, she said that she no longer has these issues after losing a significant amount of weight

Stevenson added she has gone back to eating solid foods for quite some time. “For me, it was perfect as you see me to the size [I had] you will know,” she said.

Adding to this, another patient, Teekah Singh, said that prior to the surgery he was over 400 pounds and has since gone down to just around 200 pounds. He praised the bariatric surgery team and added that he has been re-energized and is back to living a normal and healthier life.