Adolescent Weight Loss Surgery: Current Issues

A global childhood obesity epidemic is now affecting boys and girls of all racial and ethnic groups. Increasingly, adolescents are seeking effective weight loss options and are also increasingly undergoing bariatric procedures. Here, we briefly review various facets of the childhood obesity problem and explore the option of bariatric surgery for adolescents, highlighting specific issues related to surgery in these younger age groups. Specifically, we will discuss current information relevant to treatment options and procedures, candidacy for surgery, access and insurance coverage, and adherence during the postoperative follow-up period. We also briefly describe an ongoing NIH-funded study, which was designed to examine some of these important topics.