A new study by researchers at the Department of Veterans Affairs finds gastric bypass does not extend the lives of older, severely obese patients, according to a report by Internal Medicine News.
From 2000-2006, researchers compared patients undergoing VA Roux-en-Y gastric bypasses with patients who did not have surgery. Both groups were on average in their 50s and had a similar body mass.
Overall, the bypass patients had a lower mortality rate six years out, but these patients had a higher mortality rate when key variables were factored in.
One author advised: "If someone comes to you and says, 'I want bariatric surgery because it's going to improve my longevity,' the answer is no."
Read the Internal Medicine News report on gastric bypass.
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