The burden on her 5-foot frame left her feeling desperate. She had severe back pain, slept sitting up, and couldn't even lift her grandson. Yet every diet and exercise program she tried failed. In the procedure, doctors drastically reduce the size of the stomach using staples, then re-route a section of the small intestine, so less fat and fewer calories are absorbed. Nine months later, Ruggiero has lost 93 pounds.
Most patients keep the weight off for good.
Her surgeon, Dr. Elliot Goodman, explains who the surgery is for. A candidate for this operation has to be at least 100 pounds over their ideal body weight. They have had to try every other less radical therapy to lose weight. Today, with obesity one of the nation's most pressing public health problems, there are a lot of candidates. That's a 100 percent increase in five years.