Weight loss surgery risk
December 20, 2004
By Hannah Nelson
Weight loss surgery is big news these days, both because
of its success and the occasional nightmares when something
goes terribly wrong.
Carol Griffiths' dogs Lady Day and Reenie have been
there for her through thick and thin. At one point she
weighed 453 pounds.
Her dogs were a welcome distraction for Carol when
she decided to do something to keep herself alive. She
had gastric bypass surgery to reduce the size of her
stomach. Now Carol's happy to be down to 150.
Carol's weight loss improved her diabetes and risk
of heart disease, but it also caused another problem,
"My feet were tingling and numb. I started falling.
I was dragging my left leg."
Carol developed what's called peripheral neuropathy,
a disease of the nerves that can show up as a mild case
of carpal tunnel, or as in Carol's case as severe weakness
in her arms and legs.
Doctor P. James Dyck and colleagues at the Mayo Clinic
studied peripheral nerve damage in people who had gastric
bypass surgery, "We found that people developed
it when they were losing weight too rapidly, when they
had nutritional deficiencies."
After Carol's surgery she had a hard time keeping food
down, so she didn't get the nutrition she needed. But,
this may be a preventable problem for many patients,
"People who get nutritional supplements should
be able to prevent, in large part, getting peripheral
neuropathy."
And, now with the support of Lady Day and Reenie Carol
is getting stronger and healthier.
Source:www.wistv.com
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