Weight Loss Program

Is Bariatric Surgery Right for You?

If you’re overweight, and diets and exercise haven’t helped, you may be considering bariatric (weight-loss) surgery. While surgery may sound extreme, carrying excess weight can put you at a higher risk for diabetes, high blood pressure and many other health concerns. Valley Baptist Medical Center is here to help.

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The Valley Baptist Difference

At Valley Baptist, we want to be your first choice for weight-loss surgery. When you choose Valley Baptist, you can expect:

• Compassion. Experienced and compassionate care by board-certified doctors who specialize in obesity medicine and general vascular surgeons who specialize in bariatric surgery.
• Follow-through. A continuum of care that starts with your very first informational seminar and continues after your surgery to help you create lasting lifestyle changes.
• Excellence. The Valley Baptist Surgical and Medical Weight-Loss Program in Brownsville is a Comprehensive Center accredited by the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement Program. We’re the only bariatric program in Cameron County to have received this accreditation.

Obesity is a disease. Bariatric surgery can be the solution. We offer an unparalleled combination of compassionate services, surgical expertise and ongoing therapy and support, including an outpatient clinic with personalized care that doesn’t end when you leave our hospital.

Weight loss surgery is generally designed for those with a body mass index (BMI) equal to or greater than 40, or equal to or greater than 35 with serious co-morbidities. Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding is also FDA-approved for weight loss surgery in people with a BMI of 30 to 35 who have at least one obesity-related condition. Weight loss surgery is considered safe, but like many types of surgery, it does have risks. Consult with your physician about the risks and benefits of weight loss surgery.

Surgical Options for Weight-Loss

Valley Baptist offers two different weight-loss surgical procedures. Each has specific risks and benefits, and our staff and doctors will review each with you.

Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy

This surgery involves removing between 60 and 80 percent of the stomach, so that what’s left looks like a tube, or a sleeve. A smaller stomach means that you eat less, and that, along with a slower digestive process, leads to weight loss. This surgery is performed in Harlingen and Brownsville. Learn more about sleeve gastrectomy

Laparoscopic Gastric Bypass

This surgery creates a small pouch at the top of your stomach, and in addition your small bowel is divided. The biliopancreatic limb is reattached to your small bowel on one end, and the other is connected to the pouch, creating what’s called a Roux limb. The pouch releases food slowly, so you feel full after eating very little food. Learn more about gastric bypass

Bariatrics Surgery Disclaimer: Weight loss surgery is generally designed for those with a body mass index (BMI) equal to or greater than 40, or equal to or greater than 35 with serious co-morbidities.  Weight loss surgery is considered safe, but like many types of surgery, it does have risks. Consult with your physician about the risks and benefits of weight loss surgery.

We also offer revision bariatric surgery to address complications from a previous surgery or enhance weight-loss results.

Bariatric Support Groups & Informational Seminars

Weight-loss surgery isn’t just about losing weight. Not everyone in your life will understand that. Valley Baptist provides support groups so that you’ll immediately have a caring community of friends to lean on for support. If you have had weight-loss surgery, or are considering it, please join us. You’ll be able to share what life is like after surgery as well as learn more about what to expect from the procedure. Every month, we hold a meeting for the community so that anyone interested in bariatric surgery can find out what’s involved, from the costs to the surgery itself and what happens afterward.

See our Bariatric Classes & Events

Vitamins and Protein Supplements

Following surgery, your dietary needs will change. Your smaller stomach will hold only a certain amount of food, and not all of it will be digested and absorbed. To make up for the digestive changes, you’ll need to take vitamin and mineral supplements, as well as maintain a high protein intake, for the rest of your life.

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Weight loss surgery is recommended for individuals with a body mass index (BMI) equal to or greater than 35, regardless of presence, absence, or severity of co-morbidities. Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding with the Lap Band® is also FDA-approved for weight loss surgery in people with a BMI of 30 to 35 who have at least one obesity¬related condition. Weight loss surgery is considered safe, but like many types of surgery, it does have risks. Consult with your physician about the risks and benefits of weight loss surgery. These testimonials reflect results achieved by these patients. As each case must be independently evaluated and managed, actual weight loss will vary.