Bariatric surgery isn’t a solution for everyone but obesity is a major health problem worldwide and it is a solution for some and even covered by most insurances. In the United States, roughly 300,000 deaths per year are related to obesity. Obesity also increases the risk of developing several chronic diseases such as type II diabetes, insulin resistance, coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, high blood pressure, gout, gallstones, colon cancer, sleep apnea, and a form of liver disease called nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).
Obesity is defined as an excess amount of body fat. The normal amount of body fat (expressed as a percentage of body weight) is between 25-30% in women and 18-23% in men. Women with over 30% body fat and men with over 25% body fat are considered obese. Another easier way of defining obesity is by calculating the body mass index (BMI). The BMI is a mathematical formula that takes into account both a person’s weight and height in calculating the degree of obesity. In adults, normal weight is defined as a BMI between 20 and 25 BMI units, overweight from 25 to 30, obesity from 30 to 35, significant obesity from 35 to 40, morbid obesity from 40 to 45, super obesity from 45 to 50, and super-morbid obesity greater than 50. Eighty percent of deaths related to obesity occurs in obese individuals with a BMI greater than 30. To find out what your BMI is, please refer to the Body Mass Index (BMI) Table for Adults, and the Body Mass Index (BMI) Index Table for Teens.
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What is a nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)?
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) refers to a wide spectrum of liver diseases ranging from the most common, fatty liver (accumulation of fat in the liver, also known as steatosis), to Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH, fat in the liver causing liver inflammation), to cirrhosis (irreversible, advanced scarring of the liver as a result of chronic inflammation of the liver). All of the stages of Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease are now believed to be due to insulin resistance, a condition closely associated with obesity. In fact, the BMI correlates with the degree of liver damage, that is, the greater the BMI the greater the liver damage.
The term Nonalcoholic is used because liver disease due to alcohol can show the same spectrum of liver disease as a nonalcoholic fatty liver disease; however, patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease do not consume excessive amounts of alcohol.
Alarming statistics about nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
As expected, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is observed principally in developed countries. In these societies, a sedentary lifestyle and high calorie, sugar, and fat intake lead to a high prevalence of obesity, insulin resistance, and diabetes.
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is currently the most common liver disease in the U.S. and worldwide, affecting an estimated 10-24% of the world’s population. In the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control reports that currently, approximately one-half of the U.S. adult population is overweight (BMI>25) and one-quarter of the U.S. adult population is obese(BMI>30). That means upwards of 29 million Americans have nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, while 6.4 million of these persons have nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Even more alarming than these statistics, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is occurring among children in the U.S.
In most patients, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease causes no symptoms. Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease often is discovered when routine blood tests show slightly elevated levels of liver enzymes (ALT and AST) in the blood. Another way in which nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is discovered is when an ultrasound examination of the abdomen is done for other purposes, say looking for gallstones, and fat is found in the liver. In the late stages of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, the development of cirrhosis can lead to failure of the liver, swelling of the legs (edema), accumulation of fluid in the abdomen (ascites), bleeding from veins in the esophagus (varies), and mental confusion (hepatic encephalopathy). Patients with cirrhosis caused by nonalcoholic fatty liver disease also may be at risk of developing liver cancer (hepatocellular carcinoma, HCC).
One common cause of liver failure (and thus a common reason for transplantation of the liver) is cryptogenic cirrhosis (cryptogenic meaning that the cause of the cirrhosis is unknown). Doctors now believe that a large number of patients with cryptogenic cirrhosis are actually patients in the late stages of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Doctors and public health officials project that obesity-related liver diseases (cryptogenic cirrhosis and liver cancer) will become the leading cause of liver failure and liver transplantation in the not too distant future.
How are nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis treated?
Losing excess weight is the cornerstone of the treatment of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. One retrospective study found that obese individuals with elevated weight gain led to a further increase in the level of liver enzymes. 10% loss of weight leads to a significant decrease in the levels of the enzymes, and the enzymes even may become normal. The decrease in enzymes occurred at the rate of 8% per 1% loss of body weight. In studies of patients undergoing stomach (gastric) reduction operations for morbid obesity, substantial weight loss is accompanied by a marked reduction in transaminases and a regression (improvement) of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
Doctors also are using medications to treat nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. For example, insulin-sensitizing agents, such as thiazolidinediones, pioglitazone (Actos) and rosiglitazone (Avandia), and metformin (Glucophage) not only help to control blood glucose in patients with diabetes but also improve enzyme levels in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Medications in the statin class of drugs (for example, atorvastatin/Lipitor) decrease the bad LDL cholesterol and, improve enzyme levels among patients with atorvastatin. More studies are necessary to determine whether these medications also reduce the amount of fat and inflammation in the liver.
Early uncontrolled studies (not the strongest type of studies) suggested the possible benefit of ursodiol (Actigall, Urso) and vitamin E in treating atorvastatin, but more recent studies showed no benefit of either of these medications in treating atorvastatin.
Bariatric Surgery – What You Should Know
Bariatric surgery is a form of weight-loss surgery that is typically recommended when diet and exercise alone have failed to produce the desired results. There are several types of bariatric surgery, including gastric bypass, gastric sleeve, and gastric banding. Each of these procedures has its own associated risks and benefits, so it is important to talk to your doctor about which procedure is right for you.
In general, bariatric surgery works by reducing the size of the stomach and/or bypassing parts of the small intestine so that less food is digested and absorbed. This, in turn, leads to weight loss and a decrease in fat in the liver. Studies have found that bariatric surgery
Can Bariatric Surgery Reverse Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease?
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is associated with a range of serious health issues, including insulin resistance, type II diabetes, coronary heart disease, and cirrhosis. Bariatric surgery is an increasingly popular treatment option for individuals struggling to lose weight and reverse the effects of NAFLD, but it is important to understand how this surgery works and if it is the right option for you.
The bottom line, however, is that the single most effective treatment for obese people with fatty liver is to simply lose weight through diet and exercise. Unfortunately, this is no easy task in a society dominated by a sedentary lifestyle and high-calorie, high-carbohydrate, high-fat diets. With a few calls and a little research, you could find out if bariatric surgery is a good solution for you. If you’ve tried to lose weight many times over the span of years and have pre-existing medical conditions you could be a great candidate.
Give our office a call and let us lead you on a journey to a healthy new you!
We have 3 locations in the Kansas City area
➡ Independence – Near Centerpoint Hospital: 19101 B Valley View Parkway, Independence, MO 64055 – Directly across the street from Costco
➡ Lee’s Summit – Lee’s Summit Medical Center: 2100 SE Blue Pkwy, Suite 120, Lee’s Summit, MO 64063
➡ Kansas City – St. Joseph Medical Center: 1000 Carondelet Drive, Suite 203B, Kansas City, MO 64114
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