Gastric Bypass Patients May Have Diagnostic Imaging Problems
December 4th, 2007 Posted by: Dr. Cox
(Ivanhoe Newswire) â Obese patients who have problems after gastric bypass surgery may have even more hurdles because of their weight.
Researchers found 27-percent of patients in their study who weighed more than 450 pounds needed imaging to diagnose a problem after surgery but were denied it because they were above the weight restrictions for the equipment. Four of those patients instead had to have surgery to check for suspected leaks â one of the most common gastric bypass complications.
âWhen obese patients cannot be diagnosed using standard-of-care imaging techniques, then other diagnostic measures have to be instituted,â Raul Uppot, M.D., Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School was quoted as saying. âPatient care may be ultimately affected due to a compromised diagnosis.â
The study also found two patients could not have a chest CT for suspected blood clots in their lungs. Another one who suffered trauma had to have exploratory surgery instead of the noninvasive imaging.
About 140,000 gastric bypass procedures were performed in the United States in 2005. The surgery reduces the size of the stomach and bypasses part of the small intestine. The most common complications include suture tears and leaks, pulmonary embolism, pneumonia and infection.
This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, which offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, click on: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.
SOURCE: Annual Meeting of the Radiological Society of North America in Chicago, Illinois, Nov. 25-30, 2007