Patient at UAE hospital loses 80% of stomach to survive

Ajman - An urgent laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy procedure was the only option to save the young man's life.

With the obesity rate in the UAE reportedly double the world average, a 205kg Arab resident recently underwent a laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy surgery, during which 80 per cent of his stomach was removed. 
Speaking to Khaleej Times, Dr Tamer Saafan, a bariatric surgeon with Thumbay Hospital Ajman, said the diabetic hypertensive patient, who is in his thirties, was suffering morbid obesity. 
"This added more woes to his health condition, social life and work burdens, almost putting his entire life at a very grave risk."
An urgent laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy procedure was the only option to save the young man's life, he added. "It took me around one and half hours to remove about 80 per cent from the patient's stomach and finish the surgery on Tuesday morning," he said. 
"A huge part of the patient's stomach - weighing around 1.5kg and 36cm long - was removed, but he is in a good and stable condition now, but needs to strictly follow the post operation instruction to remain safe."
This weight-loss operation will help the patient survive and lead a normal and healthier life, Dr Saafan underlined.
"The main challenge was the patient's weight - 205kg. This was a big threat to his life." 
According to the World Health Organisation, obesity is on the rise worldwide, and the UAE is no exemption. "More than 2.1 billion people; about close to 30 per cent of the global population, are currently obese or overweight.
The modern lifestyle of many UAE residents proved to have a negative impact on their life, Dr Saafan pointed out.
"Obesity is mainly blamed on poor diet and lack of physical activity." He said bariatric surgery has proved to be the most effective long-term treatment modality for severe obesity. 
"Among various bariatric procedures, laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy has rapidly gained popularity to become most frequently performed worldwide." 
The outer margin of the stomach is removed in the sleeve gastrectomy, also known as a vertical sleeve gastrectomy, he explained.
"The critical operation, also known the gastric sleeve procedure, is mean to restrict food intake - leaving a sleeve of stomach, roughly the size and shape of a banana - and pylorus, the muscle that controls emptying of food from the stomach into the intestine." 
ahmedshaaban@khaleejtimes.com

• Ajman