Obesity is considered today as the epidemic of the new century. It is a chronic disease, which consists on accumulating excess fat tissue at every corner of the body. This disease is itself a cause of other related illnesses, some of them serious.

The main purpose of surgical treatments for obesity is improving the general health of severely obese patients, in such a way that their risks of serious illnesses and higher mortality are dramatically reduced, and that their self-esteem and daily life improve as well.

Most patients lose weight, in a continuous way, for 18 to 24 months after surgery. During the first three or four months after surgery, patients usually lose between 30% to 50% of their extra weight. The extra overweight is lost within the next 9 to 12 months. The Adjustable Gastric Band obtains a slower reduction rate than the Gastric Bypass; the latter procedure also gets higher weight reduction.

Studies clearly indicate that obesity surgery is highly successful, when considering both improvement and control of many health conditions related to obesity: A study from 500 patients, carried out in 2000, showed that 96% of certain disorders, related to obesity (back pains, apnea during sleep, blood hypertension, diabetes, depression) either improved or disappeared.

The loss of at least 80% of overweight, within 18 months, is a full success.