Everyone has heard of gastric bypass surgery before, but you may not know that it's not your only option for weight loss surgery. Other procedures are also available, such as duodenal switch surgery. Duodenal switch surgery is a lesser-known type of weight loss surgery, but it's worth your attention. Here are five things you need to know about this procedure. 

Who is a candidate for this procedure?

The ideal candidate for duodenal switch surgery has a body mass index of 60 or greater, or has a lower body mass index but has severe diabetes. Diabetics who are insulin-dependent or who are poorly controlled are best suited for this procedure.

If either of these criteria applies to you, talk to your doctor about duodenal switch surgery. Your doctor will evaluate your general health to make sure that you don't have health problems that can make surgery more dangerous for you, like blood clotting disorders or heart problems.

How is duodenal switch surgery performed?

Duodenal switch surgery is a fairly complicated surgery and will take about three to four hours. You will be given general anesthesia before the procedure, so you will sleep through the entire procedure. 

During the surgery, about 70% of your stomach will be removed. The remaining part of your stomach will be shaped into a small tube with staples. The resulting stomach will be between 2 and 4 ounces in size. The duodenum, the first part of the small intestine, will be left in place. The middle section of your small intestines will be cut away, and the duodenum will be sewn to the end of your small intestines. This allows food to bypass between 40% and 60% of the small intestines. 

The middle section of the small intestine is not discarded. It's re-attached at the end of the intestines so that it can still carry bile and other pancreatic secretions.

How is it different from gastric bypass surgery?

The main difference between duodenal switch and gastric bypass surgeries is that with the duodenal switch procedure, more of your food is re-routed. Most of the small intestine is bypassed, which allows for less absorption of your food. Since absorption is lower with the duodenal switch procedure, it may make it easier for you to keep the weight off after your surgery.

How effective is it?

A major study followed 1,545 duodenal switch patients and 77,406 gastric bypass patients for two years to compare their results. The duodenal switch patients were found to keep off more of their weight than their gastric bypass counterparts. The former group had managed to maintain 79% of their weight loss, while the latter group only managed to maintain 67%. 

The failure rates for duodenal switch patients were also shown to be much lower. Two years after their procedure, only 6% of patients had failed to lose at least half of their excess body weight. To put that number into perspective, about 20% of gastric bypass patients had failed. 

How long does it take to recover?

Since this is a very invasive procedure, recovery can take as long as six weeks. For the first week after your surgery, your incision sites will be very sore and you'll need to take prescription painkillers. You'll need to be careful to avoid heavy lifting so that you don't tear your stitches. 

During recovery, you'll need to be very careful about what you eat. For the first week, patients need to stick to a liquid diet, and for the next week or two after that, a pureed diet. You can slowly start adding solid foods at your doctor's direction.

If you are considering weight loss surgery, ask your doctor if duodenal switch surgery is right for you. You can also click here for more information.