Houston Gastric Sleeve Surgeons

Texas Laparoscopic Consultants

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Texas Laparoscopic Consultants is a Houston-based weight loss practice with extensive experience in advanced bariatric surgery procedures. We are dedicated to helping you achieve significant weight loss and giving you the knowledge and support to sustain your results for the rest of your life.

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About Gastric Sleeve Surgery

Gastric sleeve surgery, also known as vertical sleeve gastrectomy, is a type of bariatric surgery that removes part of the stomach and restricts the amount of food a person can consume. The procedure is also known as tube gastrectomy, gastric sleeve resection, or laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy. Our surgeons have extensive experience performing gastric sleeve and other weight loss surgery procedures on patients suffering from morbid obesity.

Benefits of Gastric Sleeve Surgery

The benefits of the gastric sleeve include reliable weight loss of 50% to 70% of excess body weight—50 to 70 lbs of weight loss for every 100 lbs overweight. Some additional advantages include:

  • A safe and effective method to lose weight
  • Ghrelin, a hormone in the stomach that stimulates appetite, is significantly reduced
  • The digestive tract is not altered, and digestion occurs naturally without causing malabsorption
  • No dumping syndrome
  • No foreign medical device in the body, as with gastric banding
  • Safer and less complex procedure since the intestines are not reroute

How Gastric Sleeve Surgery Works

Gastric sleeve surgery works by surgically removing a significant portion of the stomach, resulting in a tube-like or sleeve-like structure. The smaller stomach size limits the amount of food consumed and also decreases the amount of ghrelin, the hunger hormone, produced by the body. As a result, many people discover they are significantly less hungry after having a sleeve gastrectomy. People with Type 2 diabetes frequently see a reduction in their requirement for diabetic drugs (particularly oral meds) following the sleeve gastrectomy since ghrelin also plays a role in blood sugar metabolism.

Our Bariatric Surgeons

Our Bariatric Surgeons

Sherman C. Yu, M.D, FACS

Board-Certified Surgeon, American Board of Surgery

Dr. Sherman Yu offers advanced minimally invasive weight loss treatment options in Houston. He has been named a “Centers of Excellence Surgeon” and an “America’s Top Surgeon” in recognition of his extensive experience, surgical skill, and dedication to his patients. A Houston native, Dr. Yu earned his medical degree from Baylor College of Medicine and received fellowship training in minimally invasive and robotic surgery at the University of Texas Health Science Center.

Meet Dr. Yu

Our Bariatric Surgeons

Terry Scarborough, M.D, FACS

Board-Certified Surgeon, American Board of Surgery

Dr. Terry Scarborough is a highly experienced bariatric surgeon with a passion for helping people in Houston live healthier lives. He is an authority in minimally invasive surgical techniques and he specializes in personalized weight loss procedures. Dr. Scarborough received his medical degree from the University of New Mexico School of Medicine and went on to complete a surgical residency and a laparoscopic surgical fellowship at Baylor University.

Meet Dr. Scarborough

Our Bariatric Surgeons

Sheilendra Suresh Mehta, MD, FACS

Board-Certified Surgeon, American Board of Surgery

Dr. Sheilendra Suresh Mehta is a bariatric surgeon and the Medical Director of the Bariatric Surgery Program at Memorial Hermann Sugarland Hospital. He is dedicated to providing comprehensive care for patients seeking weight loss solutions as well as treatment for heartburn and acid reflux. Dr. Mehta is a Texas native and earned his medical degree at the University of Texas and completed a minimally invasive surgical fellowship at The Methodist Hospital in Houston.

Meet Dr. Mehta

Gastric Sleeve Procedure

About 70% of the stomach is removed by your bariatric surgeon during gastric sleeve surgery, giving the stomach a new shape in the form of a tube or “sleeve.” Because the surgery is completed laparoscopically, you will have just a few small incisions instead of one large incision. This leads to quick recovery times; patients can often go home the same day of surgery.

Occasionally for the super morbidly obese patient, the gastric sleeve procedure will be followed by the duodenal switch surgery after the patient has experienced a significant weight loss but is still obese. This process makes the second surgery less risky than if it had been performed alone or if it had been done first and is referred to as a “staged” approach to surgical weight loss. The degree of weight loss determines the timing of the second surgical procedure. The second surgery usually is performed within six to eighteen months of the first surgical procedure.

Recovery After Gastric Sleeve Surgery

Patients are typically able to return home on the day of surgery. For the first week or two, your diet will consist solely of liquids. The liquid diet is followed by pureed foods, soft foods, and finally, conventional food. This diet progression allows the staple line to heal fully without worrying about getting food stuck in the newly formed stomach because bariatric surgery can make it difficult for your body to receive the optimal amount of vitamins and minerals. You may need to take supplements and a daily multivitamin.

Surgical incisions typically take two to three weeks to heal following gastric sleeve surgery, whereas the stomach staple line typically takes six to eight weeks. Most people can start a regular exercise regimen and are close to full recovery after one month.

Adjusting your eating habits is just one of the lifestyle changes you’ll need to adopt after your stomach has healed. We’ll work with you to design dietary guidelines and a workout regimen that will support your long-term weight loss goals.

Candidates For Gastric Sleeve Surgery

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) sets the candidacy requirements for this surgical procedure. They require that the body mass index, or BMI, is higher than 40, equivalent to men being approximately one hundred pounds overweight and women being approximately eighty pounds overweight. With an obesity-related illness like heart disease, diabetes, sleep apnea, high cholesterol, or high blood pressure, a BMI between 35 and 39 may also indicate that a person is a candidate for weight loss surgery. Taking height and weight into account, the BMI is a reliable measure of body fat. Please look at our gastric sleeve surgery candidates page for more information on qualifications. You can also determine your body mass index by using our BMI calculator.

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Schedule A Consultation For Gastric Sleeve Surgery

If you have any questions about how you can lose excess weight with gastric sleeve surgery, or if you would like to schedule a consultation with one of our bariatric surgeons, please contact TLC today.

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References

¹ Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases (SOARD), the Official Journal of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery March–April, 2014 Volume 10, Issue 2, Pages 243–249

² World Journal of Gastroenterology 2015 Nov 7; 21(41): 11804–11814
³ Canadian Journal of Surgery 2013 Feb; 56(1): 47–57
¹¹ Journal of Minimum Access Surgery. 2016 Jul-Sep; 12(3): 220–225

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