To study the effectiveness of the stomach surgery in moderately obese adults, Dr. Paul E. O'Brien, of the Alfred Hospital, Melbourne, and colleagues recruited 80 patients who had body mass indexes (BMIs) of 30 to 35, comorbid conditions, severe physical limitations, or psychosocial problems related to their obesity, and who had made prior attempts to reduce weight.
Half of patients were randomized to diet, exercise, and treatment with the weight loss drug, orlistat, over a 6-month period under regular observance. The other half underwent gastric banding.
After 6 months, both groups had lost the same amount of weight (13.8 percent). But after 2 years, patients who underwent gastric banding had an average loss of 21.6 percent of their initial weight and 87.2 percent of their excess weight. However, the nonsurgical group showed progressive weight gain after 6 months.
Drs. Thomas A. Wadden and Adam Gilden Tsai, from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, co-authors of a commentary on the study caution that more data are needed on long-term outcomes and costs to determine which patients with mild to moderate obesity would benefit most from surgery.
