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Knock out fat and sugar Dr He says there is an alarming increase in obesity due to the "junk food" which the youth in particular are consuming every day. "There can be nothing as bad as the colas, as they are loaded in calories," he points out. The extra fat that a body has to bear, which is based on the weight in proportion to a person's height, can lead to various other problems including cholestorol, heart attacks, stroke and increase in prospect of diabetes. The proportion of people frequenting health clubs or gyms or using a treadmill at home is very few, he adds. A significant increase in obesity comes from in-between-meal snacks like chips and so on, especially while watching television or movies, he feels.
"When dietary and physical exercise do not produce the desired result, surgery becomes an option," he says adding that his hospital had successfully performed Vertical Band Gastroplasty, ProRing or Long Roux-en-Y gastrojejunal anastomosis for persons who are morbidly obese and cannot bring down their weight through exercise or other normal means like dieting. Obesity by definition is based on the Body Mass Index (BMI) which is weight in kg/ height in M (square). BMI is considered normal if in the range of 25 - 30. Above this is over-weight. If it is > 40, it means morbid obesity. Dr. Rajkumar recommends the special surgeries for persons who are morbidly obese or who have BMI > 35 with other health risk factors/problems.
ProRing has the same principle except that they use a proRing in place of Band. This has been performed in two cases so far with remarkable success. RIGID Hospitals has also performed a more advanced surgery called Long Roux-en-Y Gastrojejunostomy. This allows by- pass of the food directly into the mid-small intestine bypassing about 100 – 110 cm of small intestine where all the absorption of nutrients take place and thereby helping persons to lose weight faster. The weight loss in this type is more than under the two previous procedures. This is done by RIGID "at an economical cost in the range of Rs. 75,000 to Rupees one lakh (cheapest in the city)," said Dr Rajkumar. RIGID so far has performed more than 10 of these procedures and the results are promising with literally no complications. RIGID also carries out two other types of procedures to cut obesity for individuals in the mild obese category. First one is the Abdominoplasty or “tummy tuck” procedure for persons with large Apron (flabby belly) associated with or without a hernia. By this method about 7 – 8 kg of fatty tissue is knocked off and any associated hernia is also repaired. RIGID has so far carried out a whopping 700 – 800 of these procedures in the last nine years with outstanding success, Dr Rajkumar said. Liposuction, the other variety, is less invasive and done by sucking out the fat from arms, thighs, buttocks and lower abdomen after melting it through tiny holes. Again the weight loss will be in the range of 6 – 8 kg with early recovery, he said. The latest data indicates that up to 80 per cent of obese diabetics may be cured if subjectec to Bariatric Suregery. The implications in terms of avoiding long-term diabetic complications are stupendous, Dr Rajkumar said adding that his hospital was planning research with the MV Diabetes Centre on the effect of reducing obesity in prevention or increase of diabetes. "It is extremely important to assess the individual and decide the optimal procedure to ensure the final result is completely beneficial. RIGID has an admirable track record in successfully carrying out the right procedure with absolute satisfaction from persons who have undergone the same", assures Dr Rajkumar. RR
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J S Rajkumar, Chief Surgeon at Rigid Hospitals is worried about increasing levels of obesity in Chennai, particularly among the middle-class and the upper middle class. According to a recent study done by his hospital recently, nearly 30 to 40 per cent of people in this category are obese, thanks mainly to fast food like pizzas, milk shakes and the colas.
Vertical Band Gastroplasty is done to reduce the capacity of the stomach to 50 – 100 ml with the help of a stapler. A Band, positioned in place, acts as an outlet for the new stomach and avoids expansion of the stomach in future. This has been performed so far for three persons and it has been found that people lost weight in the range of 30 – 40 kg in the next few months after the Gastroplasty. The reduced intake is enough for these patients and there is no urge to eat more, Dr Rajkumar added. There are no side-effects or other complications. 
