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Treatment Options

West Georgia Health’s Bariatric Services team is here to help you get your life back. Our team will review your past and current medical history to determine if you are a candidate for surgery. Weight loss surgery (or bariatric surgery) is a last resort for losing weight after other methods have been tried without success.

In the past, obesity was seen as a weakness or failure of the individual. People were prescribed dietary guidelines or prescription medications or tried diet pills on their own to lose the extra pounds. Even when those methods failed, weight loss surgery was viewed as too dangerous or extreme. 

Today, obesity is considered a disease and the cause of many serious health conditions. Surgery has gained acceptance as a proven method to treat this disease. However, surgery isn’t for all obese patients, and eligibility must be determined.

Most surgeons will not perform surgery unless you have tried and failed to lose weight through traditional forms of treatment.  Good candidates for weight loss surgery are people with:

  • A high risk for disease
  • Existing co-morbidities
  • A genetic inclination towards obesity
  • A BMI over 40
  • Persistent obesity for five or more years
  • No untreated psychiatric disorders and no history of drug or alcohol abuse

Most candidates are between the ages of 18-65. In some cases, adolescents may qualify.