The Sleeve gastrectomy is the most recent addition to the menu of surgical options offered by Surgical Bariatrics Northwest. In this procedure more than 90% of the lateral portion of the stomach is removed. This creates a long cylindrical pouch which restricts food volume.

Weight loss with this operation tends to be superior to gastric banding and similar to that seen with gastric bypass. Weight loss is attributed to a reduction in eating capacity and appetite suppression which is associated with this procedure.  The reduction in stomach size leads to a significant reduction in ” hunger hormone” production (grehlin and others) and produces long term appetite suppression.

This operation is slightly more challenging to perform than banding procedures but less demanding than a gastric bypass. As a consequence, this procedure is associated with low complication rates. We believe it to be an improvement over banding because it offers greater  control of appetite and  does not require any adjustments. Additionally, there is no foreign material left in the body which can sometimes lead to late complications such as band erosion or slippage.  With this operation, there is less post-operative dietary inhibition (no dumping syndrome). Therefore, higher levels of carbohydrate and fat are tolerated when compared to patients with gastric bypass. This makes sleeve gastrectomy slightly less effective than gastric bypass for both weight loss and treatment of diabetes.

Unfortunately, despite the many attractive features associated with this procedure, sleeve gastectomy is considered by many to be a new and “experimental procedure” which is still being evaluated scientifically. Therefore, most insurance carriers, including medicare, opt to not offer coverage for this excellent procedure.