Bariatric Surgery Program

John Bille’ had always been successful at losing weight. Unfortunately, he was more successful at gaining it back. At 400 pounds, John often felt “out of breath,” had no energy and suffered from sleep apnea. After seeing one of his close friends succeed at losing weight and keeping it off John learned that his friend had undergone Bariatric Surgery, and his interest was piqued. After researching his options, he began attending classes at Frederick Health Hospital to learn more.

After attending a bariatric surgery seminar, John decided to have Gastric Bypass or Roux-En-Y surgery. “This surgery was my only choice for the amount of weight that I had to lose.” Gastric bypass is the most commonly thought of procedure when bariatric surgery is mentioned. The bypass restricts food intake by creating a small pouch with a portion of the top of the stomach. It also decreases how food is absorbed because the lower portion of the stomach – the duodenum – that is involved with some of the absorption of calories and nutrients is bypassed by connecting the small intestine directly to the newly formed pouch.