"Weightloss surgery helps people drop a significant amount of weight and now a new study confirms that much of the weight appears to stay off for at least  years. This study suggests that patients interested in bariatric surgery especially gastric bypass surgery should be able to lose a significant amount of weight and keep that weight off for a very long time said study researcher Matt Maciejewski. Hes a professor of medicine at Duke University School of Medicine in Durham N.C. While other research has found that weightloss surgery is the most effective treatment for obese patients there is less data on longlasting effects. The new study is notable because of the decadelong followup said Maciejewski who is also a research career scientist at Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center. In the twopart study Maciejewskis team first looked at the results of about  men and women who had gastric bypass surgery. The investigators compared weight changes in gastric bypass surgery patients to weight changes in more than  obese veterans who had no weightloss surgery or formal weightloss treatment. Gastric bypass surgery involves making the stomach smaller and attaching the lower part of the small intestine directly to the stomach so much of the small intestine is bypassed. After surgery people feel much fuller faster. The surgery also appears to alter gut hormones gut bacteria and metabolism according to the U.S. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases NIDDK. At the studys oneyear mark those who had the bypass had lost  percent of their starting weight but the nonsurgical patients had lost just  percent.  At  years the researchers had weight information on  of the nearly  patients who had the gastric bypass. Only  of them had regained so much weight that they were nearly back to their starting weight the rest kept off the weight. Compared to the nonsurgical group the bypass group weighed  percent less than at the start of the study. Next the researchers compared three types of weightloss surgeries gastric bypass sleeve gastrectomy and adjustable gastric banding. In gastric banding a band is placed at the top of the stomach to create a small pouch that reduces the size of the stomach. In sleeve gastrectomy most of the stomach is removed leaving a bananashaped sleeve. As with gastric bypass surgery both of these procedures leave people feeling full faster according to NIDDK. After four years those who had gastric bypass lost nearly  percent of their starting weight. People who had sleeve gastrectomy lost about  percent and those with gastric banding lost about  percent the researchers found. The average age of the men and women studied was about  and threequarters were men. Most were white. The study was published online Aug.  in JAMA Surgery. The study helps address a knowledge gap about longterm outcomes of bariatric surgery said Dr. Jon Gould chief of general surgery at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. The study shows that the gastric bypass procedure compared to sleeve gastrectomy or adjustable gastric banding produces more weight loss and it was sustained over the long term Gould said. He wrote a commentary to accompany the study in the same issue of the journal. Based on the new study findings Gould said I think a patient who is young and who has a long way to go may want to think about these results and all other things being equal might pick a gastric bypass for the longterm weight loss. The new finding he added validates his belief that the gastric bypass could be a durable procedure. Maciejewski acknowledged that the study has limitations. For example the study included mostly men so the findings may not apply to women. In addition women who undergo bariatric surgery are typically in their s through their s he said. In this study the average age of the men and women was . These results may not generalize to everyone he said. Another possible limitation was the loss of patients during the followup which could have affected the results the researchers noted. More information To learn more about bariatric surgery procedures visit the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery httpsasmbs.orgpatientsbariatricsurgeryprocedures. SOURCES Matt Maciejewski Ph.D. research career scientist Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center and professor of medicine Duke University School of Medicine Durham N.C. Jon Gould M.D. professor and chief of general surgery Medical College of Wisconsin Milwaukee Aug.   JAMA Surgery online"