Spain investigates obesity surgery safety:
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
The Spanish health ministry has launched an enquiry into the use of surgical treatments of morbid obesity, amid safety concerns. Almost 3,000 cases were diagnosed in 2002, of which 1,500 underwent surgery, most commonly gastric bypass. Of these patients, 15 (1%) died, according to the health ministry. But Spanish experts believe that 10% of cases suffer serious complications, with mortality rising to 2%. At least seven deaths have been recorded this year. Some 1.5% of Spaniards are morbidly obese (defined as a body mass index of over 40, when a normal weight is an index of 25), according to the national society for the study of obesity (SEEO), which believes that the number of diagnoses is currently rising by around 50% a year.