Study: Gastric bypass reduces mortality for obese

Bariatric surgery is still under fire among many insurers, several of whom are imposing strict restrictions on when they'll provide such surgery. The following study, however, may give those in favor of such surgeries a bit more ammo. New research suggests morbidly obese people who have gastric bypass surgery are less likely to die from common conditions seven to 10 years later than similarly heavy peers

The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, examined data on about 10,000 patients who had gastric bypass surgery, and compared mortality rates between the two populations. Overall, the bypass patients proved much less likely to die from heart disease, diabetes and stroke than their peers within a decade. The death rate declined by 136 per 10,000 operations.

To learn more about the research:
- read this USA Today piece

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