Rafał Mulek

The operation of the sleeve gastrectomy is currently the most frequently performed bariatric surgery, regardless of latitude. Its popularity owes primarily to very good efficiency as well as relative simplicity of performance (simplicity of this surgery is, of course, a contractual term).

The surgery involves cutting a large part of the stomach. Due to the fact that each stomach is of a different size, less important is the size of the resected stomach. The most important thing is the volume of the stomach that a patient has after the surgery. Each time we try to make the volume of the "new stomach" after the operation about 150 - 200 ml. Reducing the volume of stomach to such size is called the restriction element of the operation. Thanks to this, the patient is unable to accept a larger volume of food at one time, which is also associated with the lower caloric intake. It is also significant that the removed part of the stomach includes physiologically produced hunger hormone - ghrelin. After the gastric resection surgery, thanks to the reduced production of ghrelin, the feeling of hunger is much smaller and the desire to reach another portion of food is considerably less than before.

Not less fascinating are the other consequences of the performed surgery. We cannot explain it scientifically yet, but after surgical treatment the sense of "flavors" alters and with great surprise many of them cease to be interested in sweets (among others).