About Holy Name Medical Center
Community Resources for Patients 
Bariatric Services
Obesity is a life-long, progressive, life-threatening condition marked by excess body fat, which can significantly reduce life expectancy. When weight increases to an extreme level, it is called morbid obesity. Morbid obesity is a chronic condition with numerous medical, psychological, social and economic consequences. Some health problems associated with morbid obesity include diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, and depression.
Morbid obesity is diagnosed when a person is more than 100 pounds overweight, or with a body mass index (BMI) greater than 40, or greater than 35 with weight related health problems.
Bariatric surgery has been shown to be an effective tool to help people with morbid obesity achieve and maintain a healthier weight. Compared to other weight loss methods such as dieting and exercising, surgery provides the longest period of sustained weight loss in patients for whom all other methods have failed. Bariatric surgery has also been shown to improve many obesity-related health conditions such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol.
Over the past decade, weight loss procedures have been continually refined in order to improve results and minimize risks. Bariatric surgeons at Holy Name have access to a substantial body of clinical data to help determine the safest and most effective surgeries for their patients.
Bariatric surgery may be the next step if you remain severely obese after trying diets and exercise, or if you have an obesity-related disease. According to the National Institute of Health (NIH), bariatric surgery should be considered only for a person with diagnosed morbid obesity; it is not for those with a mild weight problem. It is not a cosmetic procedure. Anyone thinking about undergoing this type of operation should understand that surgery will cause a reduction in the number of calories you may consume, and you must commit to lifestyle and dietary changes to derive maximum benefits from the procedure. The surgery is only a TOOL. Success is possible only with your full cooperation and commitment to behavioral changes and medical follow-up, which must be carried out for the rest of your life.