Obesity is a growing epidemic in the UK and research has predicted that by 2030 it is likely that there will be 26 million people in the country with the condition – that’s a rise of 76%. These figures are drawn from a series of papers in medical journal The Lancet looking at issues surrounding the current worldwide obesity ‘pandemic,’ which predict that almost half of all men and women will be obese by 2013. Obesity has become a serious frontline issues for UK politicians, particularly given the strain it is likely to place on the NHS from not just treating the condition itself, but also related conditions, such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and numerous cancers.
Given this context, it is not surprising that a ‘cure’ has long been on the agenda and this is one of the reasons why there has been a significant rise in the number of gastric band surgeries in recent years. This type of operation effectively prevents an obese person from overeating by fitting a band around the top of the stomach to restrict food intake and control hunger. For many people this has resulted in a successful weight loss on an ongoing basis, but for others there have been complications, many of which have resulted in gastric band claims.
What many don’t realise when they sign up for a gastric band operation is that the operation itself is just the start of the process. Getting a gastric band fitted requires significant follow up, both by the patient and the medical professionals providing the aftercare – if this doesn’t happen there can be serious consequences. In June of this year it was reported that the death of 64-year-old Dianne Cooper-Clarke had been the result of consequences of a gastric band operation. Whilst the gastric band she’d had fitted had reduced the size of Ms Cooper-Clarke’s stomach and it was fitted correctly, she had continued to eat at the same rate as prior to the operation, causing a backlog of matter which clogged her throat and in the end suffocated her. Whilst this is a known complication of this kind of surgery, there is rarely much publicity surrounding it and those who choose to have the operation may not be given the support and aftercare required to sufficiently communicate how important diet changes are.
Other complications can arise from pre-existing conditions and from the operation itself – for example, the case of Clare White, 37 from Derby, who died after having the surgery. At the inquest into her death in February of this year, the coroner found that she died because her health was affected by diabetes, heart disease that had not been diagnosed and a clot on her lung.
Gastric band surgery can be the ideal solution where drastic weight loss is crucial, as long as it is combined with proper aftercare and education of the patient as to the lifestyle changes that should be made. Where it is not – or where the operation has not been prepared for, or performed properly - then the effects can unfortunately be tragic.