What exactly does the surgeon do in performing a Roun-en-Y gastric bypass procedure?
The Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass (RNY) is a combination of a restrictive (inhibiting the amount of food that can be eaten), and malabsorptive (limiting the amount of food that is absorbed into the system) procedure. The restrictive component consists of creating a small pouch at the top of the stomach with a surgical stapler. The malabsorptive portion is created by dividing the small intestine and re-routing it so that one portion is connected to the small stomach pouch (Roux limb) and the remaining portion, which delivers the bile and pancreatic juice, is reconnected to the small intestine at a predetermined distance from the stomach. The only long term adverse affects of Roux-en-Y surgery are vitamin and iron deficiencies. These can be treated with vitamins, iron and B12 supplements.
