title: [Surgical procedures for severely obese patients: impact and long-term results].
abstract: Obesity is a multifactorial, genetically-determined, neuroendocrine, and chronic condition. Conservative treatment of patients with class II and III obesity (BMI >35 kg/m(2)) has only modest long-term success. Surgical procedures have been used since 1954, and the methods used are continually being updated and improved. With experienced surgeons, patients can achieve a weight reduction from around 50% with purely restrictive procedures, increasing to 75% with combined restrictive-malabsorptive methods. All weight-loss methods offer a considerable improvement or elimination of obesity-related co-morbidities and substantially improvement of quality of life. Well-documented, long-term studies reveal a perioperative mortality of 0.2-1.0%, dependent on the surgeon's experience, and a maximum perioperative morbidity of 20%. Bariatric surgery is accepted as evidence based, safe and effective treatment of obesity.
authors.affiliation: Stoffwechselzentrum, Klinik Hirslanden, Zürich, Schweiz.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Potoczna
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Steffen
authors.forename: F F
authors.initials: FF
authors.lastname: Horber
mesh_terms: D050110:Bariatric Surgery / Q000145:classification / Q000379:methods / Q000401:mortality*; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D009767:Obesity, Morbid / Q000401:mortality* / Q000601:surgery*; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000401:mortality*; D011379:Prognosis; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D012307:Risk Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome