Surgical Treatment of Obesity

Recovering from Surgery: Physical Changes

During the weight loss period you will lose your body fat, with little change in your muscle mass. This is very important, since loss of muscle mass is a form of protein malnutrition that can have serious consequences. Some physical changes are commonly associated with weight loss:

Sagging Skin

As you get thinner, you will notice you will have a lot of extra skin. The younger you are, the greater the likelihood that your skin will still have enough elasticity to shrink as you shrink. This may be helped by daily exercises. Unfortunately, the shrinkage of skin is never 100 percent and usually is very little. Thus, it should be expected that your breasts will sag, as may your upper arms, abdomen and thighs. The firmness you had when you were obese is gone.

About 15-20 percent of people who lose 100 lbs. or more ask for procedures to reduce the abdominal apron (tummy tuck), the sagging of breasts (mammopexy) or the extra skin on the upper arms (arm reduction) or thighs (thigh reduction). These are plastic surgery procedures which are usually not covered by insurance companies. Under some circumstances, however, insurance may cover a large part of these expenses.

Hair Loss

Another frequent complaint by patients after gastric surgery is hair loss. This is probably partly related to some decrease in protein nutrition, but other factors also appear to be important. By 3 months, you may feel that you are going bald. In fact, you are not going bald—almost all patients experience significant hair loss. By 6 months, hair growth should be returning to normal, and by 1 year, there should be little or no change from what you started with prior to surgery.

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