Weight Loss Options for Any Lifestyle

Whatever your weight loss goals, UH has a solution that will work for you. Our programs include weight loss surgery, non-surgical weight loss procedures, nutrition and diet-based programs. Our team of doctors, surgeons, specialists, nutrition experts and support staff can help you find the right program to achieve your weight loss success.

With ongoing education, support and follow-up care, we can guide you on your journey toward a healthier life.

What Weight Loss Options Do I Qualify For?

In general, your candidacy for any given weight loss program will be determined by your body mass index (BMI). Your decision is also influenced by how much weight you want to lose, as well as your personal preferences – such as whether you want a non-surgical or surgical option.

Our bariatric surgery specialists and weight loss surgeons at University Hospitals use the latest surgical advancements to help patients experience safe and successful weight loss to enjoy a healthier, more active lifestyle. Bariatric surgery procedures are an option for patients who have not had long-term success with diets and other weight loss efforts. Our program offers both minimally invasive surgical weight loss solutions and non-invasive weight loss procedures to fit each patient's unique weight loss and health needs.

If weight loss surgery is part of your treatment plan, our highly experienced bariatric surgery specialists and staff offer individualized support for patients – including lifetime nutrition counseling for patients both before and after weight loss surgery with a team of registered dietitians. Many of our skilled staff are people who have had weight loss surgery themselves. So, they understand the journey and know how to help our patients achieve long-term success. Get Started Today

Am I a Candidate for Bariatric Surgery?

Enter your height and weight to see if bariatric surgery is right for you.

Am I a Candidate for Bariatric Surgery?

To qualify for bariatric weight loss surgery, patients must meet one of the following criteria:

• BMI of 40 or higher (about 100 pounds overweight)
• BMI of 35 – 39.9 and at least one medical condition caused by being overweight. These conditions include: diabetes, high blood pressure, sleep apnea and others

To qualify for endoscopic weight loss procedures, patients must have a body mass index greater than 30.

If you have a significantly elevated BMI (over 75), you may not meet the qualifications for weight loss surgery immediately because of the higher risk based on your current weight. Our team will help you understand all of your weight loss choices and perhaps recommend approaching your weight loss goals through more of a phased approach.

Proven Health Benefits of Weight Loss

Research has shown that long-term weight loss can significantly impact your health with positive benefits and improved quality of life. In fact, weight loss treatment can actually resolve health problems related to being overweight, including:

Diabetes and High Blood Sugar

Obesity and genetics are the primary causes of type 2 diabetes, a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Weight loss has long been proven to decrease the risk of type 2 diabetes.

Infertility

Obesity can impair reproduction in men and women, leading to infertility in couples trying to conceive, complications in pregnancy and adverse effects on their offspring. For men, obesity can result in reduced semen quality and impaired erectile function, while obesity in women is linked with increased risk of miscarriage and lowered ability to get pregnant.

Osteoarthritis, Painful Joints and Back Pain

Obesity results in increased loads and stresses on the knee and hip, resulting in “wear and tear” arthritis – also known as osteoarthritis – that often develops at a much earlier than expected age. Research has shown that weight loss prevents development of arthritis, decreases arthritis symptoms and slow the progress of arthritis.

Additional health problems

• Fatty liver disease (NASH)
• Heart disease
• High blood pressure
• High cholesterol
• Sleep apnea
• Fatty liver disease or NASH
• Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
• Prevention of weight-related cancers (endometrial, renal, colon, esophageal)
• Pseudotumor cerebri (intra-cranial hypertension, or increased pressure around the brain) and chronic headaches
• Urinary incontinence

Losing weight can also help you achieve a weight-loss goal required for another surgery, such as knee replacement, back surgery, transplant surgery, etc.

Types of Weight Loss Surgery

We offer several types of weight loss surgery options, including minimally invasive and non-invasive options. These minimally invasive procedures are performed through tiny incisions in the skin and can shorten your recovery time and significantly reduce pain and scarring. More importantly, risks of infection or bleeding are much lower with smaller incisions. This also helps us provide better pain control.

Our weight loss surgery patients are typically up walking in the hallway and able to start sipping on water three hours after surgery. Most of our patients are ready to go home after one or two nights, depending on the surgery they choose.

Bariatric Surgery Options

Gastric Bypass

Also known as Roux-en-Y gastric bypass weight loss surgery, this procedure reduces the size of your upper stomach to a small pouch to reduce the amount of food you can eat which leads to weight loss. The intestines are also rerouted to decrease the absorption of calories and change the metabolism of insulin. Gastric bypass surgery can help you lose 50 – 75 percent of your excess weight on average.

Gastric bypass has been around longer than any other surgical weight loss procedure available today and remains one of the most commonly performed bariatric surgery procedures worldwide. The gastric bypass is commonly considered for patients that have diabetes or severe heartburn. The gastric bypass is one of the most effective anti-reflux operations that are available today, and reflux is resolved in 75 percent of patients that choose this surgery.

Sleeve Gastrectomy

With the minimally invasive sleeve gastrectomy procedure, our surgeon removes 80 to 90 percent of your stomach, making more of a tube shape, similar to a medium sized banana. With a smaller stomach, you will feel fuller faster. Bariatric sleeve surgery removes the portion of your stomach where hunger hormones are generated, which also results in a decreased appetite and improvement in hunger. You may lose 50 – 60 percent of your excess weight on average with a gastric sleeve procedure, along with seeing improvements in your overall health.

Robotic Bariatric Surgery

In addition to our other minimally invasive bariatric procedures, UH also offers weight loss surgery using robotic surgery technology. The bariatric surgeons at UH are able to perform Roux-en-Y gastric bypass and sleeve gastrectomy procedures using the da Vinci robotic surgery system. This surgical technology uses an advanced set of tools that the surgeon is able to expertly manipulate with superior precision and range of motion. Because robotic surgery only requires a few small incisions through which to insert the instruments, it can mean less blood loss, lower risk of complications or infection and reduced pain for patients. Other advantages of robotic bariatric surgery may include shorter hospital stays, faster recovery and improved outcomes.

Revisional Surgery of Previous Weight Loss Operations

If previous weight loss surgery has not been successful for you, or if you have experienced problems with your prior surgery, our team can provide a thorough health assessment and viable recommendations.

With appropriate tests and evaluation, we can help determine if you are experiencing difficulties related to your first weight-loss procedure and we can make suggestions for a revisional procedure if it is appropriate. Some problems can include weight regain from fistula formation, severe heartburn/reflux that isn’t controlled by medications, persistent ulcer formation, abdominal pain, inability to eat, diarrhea or constipation.

Endoscopic Repair of Digestive Complications

With skilled use of endoscopic procedures (no incisions and done with a camera through the mouth), our team is able to repair many digestive problems that may arise in your weight loss journey. These may include weight gain, fistulas, perforations, and gastroesophageal reflux disease. These are cutting edge techniques that are only performed at specialized centers. University Hospitals has specialists specially trained in bariatric endoscopy.

Duodenal Switch

This biliopancreatic diversion with duodenal switch (BPD/DS) is a more complex bariatric surgery technique that combines the steps of the sleeve gastrectomy with the decreased absorption of calories aspect similar to the gastric bypass. A duodenal switch (DS) is known to produce the largest weight loss of more than 150 pounds, as well as the greatest benefits for control of diabetes, but also carries the highest risk of malnutrition. Your surgeon can help determine if this is right for you.

Intragastric Balloon

One of our most successful non-invasive endoscopic options for bariatric non-surgical weight loss is a gastric balloon system called ORBERA® that places an inflatable balloon in the stomach through an endoscope, eliminating the need for incisions and scars. This gastric balloon is then filled with a water solution to expand so our patients feel full sooner and eat less.

The balloon is left in the stomach for six months. During this time, patients participate in a personalized diet and exercise program to encourage portion control and healthy lifestyle. Typically, patients lose 30 to 50 pounds. This is one of the many non-surgical weight-loss treatments we offer.

This procedure is not covered by insurance providers yet. Please enquire about self-pay or finance options available.

TransPyloric Shuttle

The BAROnova TransPyloric Shuttle* (TPS) is a device that is inserted into the stomach through the mouth using a simple endoscopic procedure. Once in place, the TransPyloric Shuttle may cause a patient’s stomach to fill up faster, stay full longer, and potentially delay gastric emptying, which is a known mechanism of action for weight loss. The procedure is not paid for by insurance providers yet. Please enquire about self-pay or finance options available.

This procedure is not covered by insurance providers yet. Please enquire about self-pay or finance options available.

AspireAssist

The AspireAssist is a new, FDA-approved weight loss solution for people with obesity. Unlike many other weight loss procedures, it’s non-surgical and reversible. It consists of a portal that is placed into the stomach using an endoscope. The portal allows patients to empty up to one-third of the calories from their stomach after they have had a meal as part of very closely monitored calorie-restriction regimen. Patients who desire to have the AspireAssist are followed closely with the medical weight-loss program, to help with dietary changes and monitoring. The portal allows for the weight-loss team to track how many times the portal is used for emptying calories, and give patients additional feedback during follow-up visits to help them reach their desired weight.

One advantage of the AspireAssist is that it does not have to be removed after six months, as is recommended for the Orbera gastric balloon. Patients seeking the least invasive option with the option to keep the portal as long as they want might consider the AspireAssist. Sometimes, non-surgical options may be a bridge to safely undergo surgical weight-loss options.