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Obesity: an innately incurable disease?
1Surgical Clinic of Dominikus-Krankenhaus, Düsseldorf, Germany.
Background:
Staple-line disruption is a common complication after vertical banded gastroplasty (VBG).
Methods:
Of 655 patients who underwent VBG, a hole across the partition developed in 46 (7.02%).
Results:
The original excellent weight loss from a BMI of 49.2 +/- 6.9 kg/m2 to 31.9 +/- 6.1 kg/m2 stopped with staple-line dehiscence, and all 46 patients regained weight, even to their original weight. After operative revision by restapling (n = 24/46) or implantation of an adjustable band (n = 10/46), patients reduced their body weight once more (to BMI 31.2 +/- 5.9 or 33.8 +/- 5.8).
Conclusion:
Obese patients need the food-intake reducing operations maintained lifelong; the real cause of obesity is not curable until now, and only the main symptom, "overweight," can be improved by therapy.