Stomach stapling cuts diabetes symptoms

28/08/2009

The Times

By: Presswatch

Weight-loss surgery can eliminate the symptoms of type 2 diabetes in nearly eight out of ten patients who have the drastic procedure, a large international study has found. A review of medical research involving 135,000 patients found the symptoms of diabetes were resolved or improved in a majority of those who had bariatric surgery to help to lose weight. Overall, 78 per cent of patients had a "complete resolution" of their diabetes for up to two years after surgery, while 87 per cent experienced either resolution or an improvement in their condition. The new study was presented yesterday at a conference of the International Federation for the Surgery of Obesity and Metabolic Disorders in Paris. The study was led by Professor Henry Buchwald, of the Department of Surgery at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. It found patients lost an average of 38.5kg after the procedure, representing 55.9 per cent of their excess weight. The benefits of the operation for diabetes are not fully understood, but are thought to be related to weight loss.