SLEEVE GASTRECTOMY

Gastric Sleeve Surgery in Istanbul, Turkey

A Safe and Effective Weight Loss Procedure

The gastric sleeve procedure is a restrictive bariatric surgery that significantly reduces the size of your stomach and your appetite to encourage weight loss. It is an uncomplicated procedure with a shorter recovery time than others. This procedure physically restricts the amount of food you can eat by reducing the size of your stomach. It is a restrictive surgery that also limits the production of ghrelin, which contributes to a reduction in appetite. This allows patients to feel satisfied with less food, and thus encourages portion control.

According to the latest global registry of the International Federation for the Surgery or Obesity and Metabolic Disorders (IFSO), the gastric sleeve surgery, also known as sleeve gastrectomy, is by far the most requested and practiced bariatric surgery worldwide. Out of all the bariatric surgeries that are practiced around the world, roughly 59% account for this type of surgery, and almost all of them are done with laparoscopic techniques. This is the bariatric procedure for which experts have the most data and the most register of outcomes and results in long-term follow-ups, it is also the most standardized procedure in the bariatric community. It has been largely documented that complications due to sleeve gastrectomy are very low, and that it provides good control and great benefits over comorbidities associated to obesity.

What İs Gastric Sleeve Surgery?

The gastric sleeve, also called sleeve gastrectomy, is a bariatric surgery operation to induce weight loss. It works by reducing the size of your stomach. The word “gastrectomy” means removal of part or all of your stomach. The gastric sleeve operation removes about 80% of your stomach, leaving behind a tubular “sleeve,” about the size and shape of a banana.

What Does A Gastric Sleeve Do?

Reducing the size of your stomach is a simple way to restrict the amount of food you can eat in one sitting, making you feel fuller faster. But it also serves another purpose: it reduces the amount of hunger hormones that your stomach can produce. This helps to decrease your appetite and cravings and may help to prevent the impulses that cause people to regain the weight they've lost.

What Are The Advantages Of This Procedure?

Compared to other bariatric surgery operations, the gastric sleeve is simpler, quicker and safer. People with health conditions that might not be suited for a longer procedure can often tolerate a sleeve gastrectomy. Because the surgery doesn’t rearrange your intestines, it’s also much less likely to cause long-term complications related to nutrition.

While the average weight loss with gastric sleeve is slightly less than with more complex weight loss surgeries, it still offers excellent weight loss and health benefits. This operation began as the first step in a two-step bariatric surgery called the duodenal switch. Surgeons started offering it as a standalone procedure after many people found that they didn’t need to complete the second part.

Is İt Effective?

Gastric sleeve surgery helps you lose weight in two ways:

Your stomach is significantly smaller so you feel full and stop eating sooner. This means you take in fewer calories.

The part of your stomach that produces ghrelin — a hormone that’s associated with hunger — has been removed, so you’re not as hungry.

According to the American Society of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, you can expect to lose at least 50 percent of your excess weight within the 18 to 24 months following gastric sleeve surgery. Some people lose 60 to 70 percent.

It’s important to remember that this will only happen if you are committed to following the diet and exercise plan recommended by your surgeon. By adopting these lifestyle changes, you’re more likely to keep the weight off long term.

Weight loss benefits

Losing a significant amount of excess weight can improve your quality of life and make it easier to perform many daily activities.

Another important benefit of weight loss is the lower risk of obesity-related health conditions. These include:

• Type 2 diabetes
• High cholesterol (hyperlipidemia)
• High blood pressure (hypertension)
• Obstructive sleep apnea

What Are The Risks And Complications?

Gastric sleeve surgery is considered a relatively safe procedure. However, like all major surgeries, there can be risks and complications.

Some complications can occur after almost any surgery. These include:

• Hemorrhage: Bleeding from the surgical wound or inside your body can lead to shock when it’s severe.
• Deep vein thrombosis (DVT): Surgery and the recovery process can increase your risk of a blood clot forming in your vein, usually in a leg vein.
• Pulmonary embolism: A pulmonary embolism can happen when part of a blood clot breaks off and travels to your lungs.
• Irregular heartbeat: Surgery can increase the risk of an irregular heartbeat, especially atrial fibrillation.
• Pneumonia: Pain can cause you to take shallow breaths which can lead to a lung infection, like pneumonia.

Gastric sleeve surgery can have additional complications. Some possible side effects that are specific to this surgery include:

• Gastric leaks: Stomach fluids can leak from the suture line in your stomach where it was sewn back together.
• Vitamin deficiencies: The section of your stomach that’s removed is partly responsible for the absorption of vitamins your body needs. Unless you take vitamin supplements, this can lead to deficiencies.
• Heartburn (GERD): Reshaping your stomach can cause or worsen heartburn. This can typically be treated with over-the-counter medication.

It’s important to remember that changing your diet and exercise habits are essential to losing the weight and keeping it off after gastric sleeve surgery. It’s possible to gain the weight back if you:

• Eat too much
• Eat an unhealthy diet
• Exercise too little

Other Concerns

Another common concern, especially when you lose a lot of weight quickly, is the large amount of excess skin you may be left with as the pounds fall away. This is a common side effect of gastric sleeve surgery.

This excess skin can be surgically removed if it bothers you. But keep in mind that it can take up to 18 months for your body to stabilize after gastric sleeve surgery. That’s why it’s usually best to wait before considering a skin removal procedure. Until then, you may want to try some techniques for tightening loose skin.

Another thing to consider before deciding to have gastric sleeve surgery is that, unlike some other bariatric surgeries, gastric sleeve surgery is irreversible. If you are not happy with the outcome, your stomach cannot be changed back to the way it was.

Procedure Details

What qualifies you for gastric sleeve surgery?

To qualify, the general requirements are:

• That you have severe obesity (class III). This is determined by your BMI (body mass index), which is calculated by your weight and height, and your related health conditions. Class III obesity means a BMI of 40 or higher, or a BMI of at least 35 with at least one related disease.
• That you have tried to but not succeeded in losing weight prior to surgery.
• That you are physically and mentally prepared for the surgery and recovery process. Before qualifying for weight loss surgery, you’ll meet with a team of dietitians, psychologists and other medical specialists for counseling and screening.

What happens before gastric sleeve surgery?

If you’ve passed your health screening and qualify for bariatric sleeve surgery, the next step will be a two-week liquid diet. Your surgeon will give you specific guidelines to follow. The purpose is to lose some of the fat in your abdomen and your liver to make the surgery safer.

You’ll be asked not to eat or drink anything for 12 hours before your operation. That’s to make sure your stomach is empty during the procedure. Having food or liquid left in your stomach during the surgery could cause unpleasant or even dangerous side effects.

What Happens During Gastric Sleeve Surgery?

• Your surgeon will give you general anesthesia, so you’ll be asleep during the procedure.
• Your surgeon will make a small cut in your abdomen (about 1/2 inch long) and insert a port. They’ll pump carbon dioxide gas through the port to expand your abdomen.
• Then they’ll place a small lighted video camera (laparoscope) through the port. The camera will project your insides onto a screen.
• Through one to three additional incisions, your surgeon will insert additional ports and complete the procedure using long, narrow tools.
• They will measure out the gastric sleeve, then divide and separate the remainder of your stomach using a surgical stapler.
• Your surgeon will remove the remainder of the stomach, then close your incisions.

How Will Your Diet Change After Gastric Sleeve Surgery?

Before gastric sleeve surgery is performed, you typically have to agree to specific lifestyle changes recommended by your surgeon. These changes are meant to help you achieve and maintain weight loss.

One of these changes includes eating a healthier diet for the rest of your life.

Your surgeon will recommend the best gastric sleeve diet for you before and after your surgery. The dietary changes your surgeon suggests may be similar to the general dietary guidelines below.

Dietary changes

• Two weeks before surgery. Increase protein, lower carbohydrates, and eliminate sugar from your diet.
• Two days before and the first week after surgery. Ingest only clear liquids that are caffeine- and carbonation-free.
• For the next three weeks. You can add pureed food to your diet.

You’ll usually be able to eat regular, healthy food about one month after your surgery. You’ll find that you eat less than before the procedure because you’ll get full quickly and won’t feel as hungry.

Your limited diet and smaller meals may cause some nutritional deficiencies. It’s important to make up for this by taking multivitamins, calcium supplements, a monthly B-12 shot, and others as recommended by your surgeon.

Contact Our Practice at Istanbul Today

Our clinic is located in the top medical tourism city in Turkey, Istanbul. To learn more about the procedure or to schedule a consultation, contact our surgical facility online or dial (90) 544 165 05 04 (TR).

The Bottom Line About Gastric Sleeve Surgery

Gastric sleeve surgery is one of several types of bariatric surgery options. It works by making your stomach smaller, so you eat less. Because the size of your stomach is reduced, you’ll also find that you’re less hungry.

To qualify for gastric sleeve surgery, you must meet certain criteria. You need to prove that you’ve tried other weight-loss methods — including diet, exercise, and weight loss medications — without success. Other qualifying criteria include your BMI and whether you have any obesity-related health conditions.

If you follow a healthy diet and exercise regimen regularly after gastric sleeve surgery, you may be able to lose more than 50 percent of your excess weight within 24 months.

However, as with most surgical procedures, there is the risk of side effects and complications. If you’re interested in gastric sleeve surgery, talk with your doctor about whether you qualify for this procedure and if it’s a safe option for you.

FAQ Gastric Sleeve Surgery in Istanbul Turkey

Is it most common weight loss procedure?

If you would like to have a weight loss procedure performed, you will soon discover that there are many options. Not everyone is familiar with the Gastric Sleeve, even though it is one of the most common procedures. That is because this method is the safest procedure. It is minimally invasive for the body and is better known as a stomach reduction. The Gastric Sleeve is very effective. It will help you lose more than half of your excess weight!

How are Gastric Sleeve before and after?

If you are overweight and you feel like you have done everything you can, a gastric sleeve is often a good solution. All the diets that have plagued you for years will become a thing of the past. Of course, you will eat a lot less after the Gastric Sleeve procedure, because your stomach is a lot smaller. However, that's no problem, because you will also be a lot less hungry!

Fortunately, all functions continue to work properly because we are not making any changes to connections within the body.

Is the gastric sleeve safe?

The risks of gastric sleeve surgery are far less than the risks of having obesity and its related diseases. It also has lower complication rates than other common operations, including gallbladder removal and hip replacement. Most gastric sleeve procedures are performed by minimally invasive surgical techniques, which means less pain from incisions and faster recovery.

How is gastric sleeve surgery performed?

Most of the time, a sleeve gastrectomy is done by laparoscopic or robotic surgery. That means that instead of making a large incision (or cut) to open your abdominal cavity to access your organs, your surgeon will perform the operation through small incisions. This makes for an easier recovery, but some people may be better served by open surgery, depending on their conditions.

How long does gastric sleeve surgery take?

Compared to other weight loss surgery procedures, a sleeve gastrectomy is a relatively short and simple operation. It takes about 60 to 90 minutes. Your surgeon may still want you to stay in the hospital for one to two days afterward. This way, they can help manage your pain and any temporary side effects of surgery, such as nausea.

What happens after gastric sleeve surgery?

You’ll have frequent check-ups with your healthcare provider in the following weeks and months. They’ll monitor your weight loss progress, your related health conditions and any side effects of the surgery.

They’ll also want to know if you’re taking good care of yourself and following the necessary lifestyle guidelines to maintain your health and weight loss.

Will I have to follow a diet after gastric sleeve surgery?

In the short term, you will have to follow strict dietary guidelines to make sure your stomach heals well. After a few months, you may begin to eat a more normal diet, but you’ll still have to choose your foods wisely.

Because you won’t be able to eat as much as before, you’ll have to make sure that what you do eat is nutritious enough to sustain your energy needs. You’ll begin taking vitamins shortly after surgery and will need to continue taking them permanently.

Gastric Sleeve or Gastric Bypass surgery?

The difference between a Gastric Sleeve and Gastric Bypass? With a sleeve, the stomach is reduced in size, but the small intestine and stomach valve are kept intact. This reduces the risk of long-term complications.

However, sometimes a Gastric Bypass is a better choice, for example in patients with high cholesterol, diabetes or if you suffer from acid reflux. This changes the way the body digests food.

With a Gastric Sleeve you do not suffer from dumping syndrome, while this can occur with a Gastric Bypass. This means that your stomach is emptying too quickly, which can cause cramps and diarrhea in the gastrointestinal tract (often occurs just after eating). This is not dangerous, but very annoying.

The Gastric Sleeve is often preferred over the Gastric Bypass, because this procedure is less invasive for the body. However, if a Gastric Bypass suits you better, our surgeons will always give you honest advice.