Morbid obesity -- roughly defined as being at least 80 lbs overweight -- can result in diabetes and high blood pressure; your back, your feet, your knees can suffer; breathing can be labored, and even sleep apnea can develop; there's increased risk for arthritis, cancer and gallbladder disease, as well as liver disease, stroke and urinary stress incontinence. Such obesity is uncomfortable and significantly affects daily living. For many, it's also embarrassing, humiliating, and depressing.

 

Relatively new and extremely effective, this surgical approach restricts or bypasses the stomach, meaning that you either can't fit as much food or that less of it is absorbed. You lose that weight, and most important of all, you improve your health.

 

The option of weight loss surgery is not for everyone. Potential patients are required to attend a number of educational presentations and personal evaluations, and are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the benefits and risks that accompany any surgical procedure, particularly one as life-altering as this.

 

Bariatric surgeon David Thoman, Director of Bariatric Surgery, a board-certified specialist and member of the SBCH medical staff, is uniquely qualified to perform these life-saving procedures. Prior to coming to Santa Barbara in 2004, Dr. Thoman was Director of Minimally Invasive Surgery and the Medical Director of Bariatrics at the Naval Medical Center in San Diego, the world's largest military hospital. Trained at Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia , the Naval Medical Center in San Diego , and the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, Dr. Thoman completed a Fellowship in Minimally Invasive Surgery at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.

 

Call (805) 730-1470 for more information.