Bariatric surgery for obesity and metabolic disorders: state of the art

Obesity is one of the most important public health conditions worldwide. Bariatric surgery for severe obesity is an effective treatment that results in the improvement and remission of many obesity-related comorbidities, as well as providing sustained weight loss and improvement in quality of life. Contemporary bariatric operations include Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, sleeve gastrectomy, adjustable gastric band and the duodenal switch. The vast majority of these procedures are now performed using laparoscopic technique, the main advantages of which include rapid recovery, the reduction of postoperative pain and the reduction of wound-related complications, compared with open surgery. Contemporary bariatric surgery is now safe, with a mortality of three in 1,000 patients; however, all bariatric operations are associated with their own unique short-term and long-term nutritional and procedural-related complications. Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is the most studied metabolic disorder associated with obesity, with data demonstrating that improvement and remission of T2DM in patients with obesity is superior after bariatric surgery compared with conventional medical therapy. Bariatric surgery is now a part of some treatment algorithms for the medical management of patients with T2DM and severe obesity. New, minimally invasive and endoscopic devices for the treatment of obesity have now been approved in the USA, which will expand the treatment options for individuals with obesity.