[Surgical treatment for morbid obesity]

Obesity has become a serious public health problem in Mexico and at present time and the best treatment for morbid obesity is surgery. Recently, laparoscopic techniques have become available for treatment of this disease. Surgery is indicated in patients with body mass index (BMI) >35 kg/m2, and with comorbidity. Restrictive procedures such as adjustable gastric banding and vertical banded gastroplasty have less incidence of postoperative complications; however efficacy in terms of weight loss is not as good as in malabsorptive or mixed procedures. Patients who undergo these malabsorptive or mixed procedures (gastric bypass, biliopancreatic diversion) are at higher risk for postoperative complication. To date, gastric bypass is considered the care standard for treatment of morbid obesity; it confers an approximately 70% of body-weight-loss excess, with an acceptable rate of complications.