Vitamins, Nutrients, Herbs and Supplements For discussion about vitamins, vitamin deficiency, herbal remedies and other supplements.


advertisement
Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 05-27-2007, 11:28 PM #1
OneMoreTime's Avatar
OneMoreTime OneMoreTime is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 310
15 yr Member
OneMoreTime OneMoreTime is offline
Member
OneMoreTime's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 310
15 yr Member
Exclamation Gastric Bypass Surgery Linked to Neurological Conditions

It has long been recognized, both in traditional bariatric (weight loss) surgery or in surgical situations where large amounts of the small bowel must be removed, that malabsorption of significant amounts of vital nutrients will occur. Many deaths are related to subsequent severe nutritional compromise.

Gastric Banding, long widely accepted and practiced all over the world, is now becoming "the Gold Standard" bariatric surgery in the US after approval - even MEDICARE approves surgery for patients under a certain age and that may be extended in time. Gastric Banding creates a small stomach pouch, but much of the effectiveness is dependent on the very small channel that food must pass from the "upper stomach" to the regular stomach. NOTHING is removed or bypassed, and the procedure is totally reversible (tho when it is removed, the weight is regained).

As we here know, a lot of vitamin/mineral deficiency damage can be done before it is so blatent that a doctor can confirm it. Here is a study just released so more some of the deficiencies (neurological) can be anticipated in bypass patients. Not all doctors give the best of nutritional education or don't employ a dietician on staff or the patient lives too far away for follow-up.

- Teri

Source:University of Arkansas for Medical SciencesDate:May 26, 2007

Gastric Bypass Surgery Linked To Neurological Conditions, Study Suggests

Science Daily Katalin Juhasz Pocsine, M.D., associate professor in the UAMS Department of Neurology, is lead author of the study, which was published online May 22 in the medical journal Neurology. The study concludes that patients who undergo gastric bypass surgery, also known as bariatric surgery, are at risk for long-term vitamin and mineral deficiencies and may develop a variety of neurological symptoms.

“The frequency of operations for treatment of obesity is rapidly growing in the United States,” Juhasz Pocsine said. “These procedures are usually successful in reducing weight, but they are not without risk. Many of the complications patients experience affect the nervous system, and they are often disabling and irreversible.”
More than 150 patients who came to the UAMS Neurology Clinic following gastric bypass were included in the report. In 26 of these patients, a link between the surgery and their neurological condition was found.

All of the patients involved in the study had previously undergone the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass procedure in which a small stomach pouch is created by stapling part of the stomach together and bypassing part of the small bowel, resulting in reduced food intake and a decreased ability to absorb the nutrients in food. The interval between surgery and onset of neurological symptoms ranged from 4 weeks to 18 years.

Additional authors include UAMS Department of Neurology faculty members Sami I. Harik, M.D., department chairman and professor of neurology; Stacy A. Rudnicki, M.D., associate professor of neurology; and Robert L. “Lee” Archer, M.D., associate professor of neurology.

The 26 people involved in the study were followed for several years by UAMS physicians and represent the largest compilation of gastric bypass patients with neurological complications ever reported.

“As is evident from our findings, the neurological complications of bariatric surgery involve most parts of the nervous system, and frequently more than one,” Juhasz Pocsine said. “The conditions experienced by our patients spanned most regions of the nervous system from the cerebral cortex to the peripheral nerves.”

Symptoms of the patients in the study included confusion, auditory hallucinations, optic neuropathy, weakness and loss of sensation in the legs, and pain in the feet, among other conditions. None of the patients had prior neurological symptoms.
Many of the patients also experienced multiple nutritional abnormalities, especially low serum copper, vitamin B12, vitamin D, iron and calcium.

“Attention should be given to long-term intake of vitamin and mineral supplements to prevent some of these complications and to avoid severe and rapid weight loss,” Juhasz Pocsine said. “Patients should be made aware of the symptoms that herald these neurological complications, and physicians should attend to the wide-based nutritional deficiencies as early as possible.”

Note: This story has been adapted from a news release issued by University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.
__________________

.
OneMoreTime is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote

advertisement
Old 05-28-2007, 06:18 AM #2
glenntaj glenntaj is offline
Magnate
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Queens, NY
Posts: 2,855
15 yr Member
glenntaj glenntaj is offline
Magnate
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Queens, NY
Posts: 2,855
15 yr Member
Default Yeah, like this is a surprise.

The biggest tragedy is in getting doctors to even recognize this, when it is so logical it's a no-brainer--if you cut out, or cut off access to, the absorptive surfaces of the gastrointestinal tract, or arrange it so that foodstuffs cannot stay in it long enough for full nutrition to be absorbed, of course deficiencies are likely.

And yet, too many gastric specialists have too little knowledge of vitamins and minerals, or nutrition in general--and let's not even talk about how little training in these areas other physicians (do not) receive.
glenntaj is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
Old 05-28-2007, 08:03 PM #3
rose rose is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Northern California
Posts: 732
15 yr Member
rose rose is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Northern California
Posts: 732
15 yr Member
Default

Very sad. Any medical person should have known this more than 50 years ago. It is just one of many scandals connected to this that there are actually physicians who do not tell their bypass patients to take at B12 in adequate amounts to insure they do not become deficient as a result and either die of other damage or develop neurological problems.

Yeah, like it's news.

Good though for anything that gets this old word out.

rose
__________________
I will be adding much more to my B12 website, but it can help you with the basics already. Check it out.

.
rose is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Looking at the Mini Gastric Bypass - Opinions? ncdude Weight Loss & Healthy Living 16 03-14-2007 06:43 PM
Update on Toad's bypass surgery Capri Parkinson's Disease 0 11-17-2006 04:12 PM


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 12:52 PM.

Powered by vBulletin • Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.

vBulletin Optimisation provided by vB Optimise v2.7.1 (Lite) - vBulletin Mods & Addons Copyright © 2024 DragonByte Technologies Ltd.
 

NeuroTalk Forums

Helping support those with neurological and related conditions.

 

The material on this site is for informational purposes only,
and is not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment
provided by a qualified health care provider.


Always consult your doctor before trying anything you read here.