Lap Band: Not Bad to the Bone

As more and more patients have all types of bariatric surgery, more follow-up studies take place to see what happens to those patients years after the surgery.

The Mayo Clinic studied the medical records of patients who had bariatric surgery to treat obesity between 1985 and 2004.

So far, the numbers have been crunched on 97 patients; 292 more patient records are available for scrutiny.

Of the 97 patients, 86 are women with an average age of 44.

Ninety percent had the most common type of surgery available during the study period: gastric bypass.

The others had stomach stapling or biliopancreatic diversion surgery.

Both of those methods, unlike the lap band, require some incisions to the stomach or the intestines leading away from the stomach.

Results? Twenty-one patients suffered a total of 31 broken bones, including:

• Hip
• Spine
• Upper arm
• Hands
• Feet

Broken foot and hand bones were the most common, according to the weight loss doctors.

Crunching the numbers a little more, the researchers discovered that a similar group of women of the same age living in the same place could expect fewer broken bones.

In fact, the bariatric study group was almost twice as likely to suffer a fracture.

Study co-author Jackie Clowes, M.D., Ph.D. told The Medical News: “The finding is unexpected. The established opinion is that obesity protects against osteoporosis (thinning bones) and therefore, fractures.”

Even though bariatric surgery patients take Calcium and vitamin D supplements after surgery, the researchers still don’t know if that will help.

Exactly why that type of surgery leads to broken bones is a mystery. So researchers will look for clues to what happens years after the stomach and intestines are cut open.

Could the bones somehow be short-changed of the nutrients they need?

Perhaps the reversible Lap Band procedure with no incisions into the stomach is on to something? (Read more about the weight loss surgery study.)

Food for thought!