A morbidly obese two-year-old from Saudi Arabia is now the youngest person in the world to have undergone gastric bypass surgery. The child weighed 72.7 lbs and had a body mass index (BMI) of 41 when he had the surgery in 2010.

According to the report published this week in the International Journal of Surgery Case Reports, the child’s parents took him to an endocrinologist when, at 14 months, he weighed 46 lbs. All of his tests were normal, but after four months of a doctor-prescribed diet, he gained 17 more pounds. How did it happen?

Although the parents were informed about the importance of a strict dietary regimen a full compliance cannot be ascertained mainly due to the different socio cultural habits and the absence of the practice of calculating the calorific value of the diet.

The new weight gain led to severe sleep apnea as well as “bowing of the legs.” The toddler was then referred to an obesity clinic for further dietary management and he gained 18 more pounds. Weighing in at 72 lbs and 30-months-old, doctors finally decided to perform a Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy.

The surgery was deemed successful and two years later, the boy’s weight has dropped to 52.9 lbs. However, the research highlights one very important factor in the child's rehabilitation:

The parents of the child did not comply with the provided instruction/s and more often showed a tendency to miss appointments and hence a regular time bound follow up was not possible.

The surgery is not reversible.

[Image via news.com.au]