[LittleLisaMarie]

CHICAGO (March 5) - The number of U.S. children having obesity surgery has tripled in recent years, surging at a pace that could mean more than 1,000 such operations this year, new research suggests. While the procedure is still far more common in adults, it appears to be slightly less risky in teens, according to an analysis of data on 12- to 19-year-olds who had obesity surgery from 1996 through 2003.

During that time, an estimated 2,744 youngsters nationwide had the operations. The pace tripled between 2000 and 2003, reaching 771 surgeries that year, the study found.

Youngsters had slightly shorter hospital stays than adults and none died in the hospital during the study period. By contrast, there were 212 in-hospital deaths out of an estimated 104,702 adults who underwent obesity surgery in 2003, or a rate of 0.2 percent, the study found.

Researchers at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Brunswick, N.J., and Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center analyzed a database of U.S. hospital patients. Obesity surgeries in children during the eight-year period and adults in 2003 were included in the analysis.

The study appears in Monday's Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.

About 5 percent of children and adults had major complications, mostly respiratory problems. Children spent an average of about 3.2 days in the hospital in 2003, versus 3.5 days for adults. Total hospital charges also were lower for pediatric patients, $30,804 per patient versus $36,056 for adults.

The youngest patients were age 12, but most were older teens. Eric Decker was one of them. In 2003, at age 17, he had gastric bypass surgery, the most common obesity operation in teens and adults.

[DocSanae]

This trend worries me in a few ways, you know.
For one, the kids are not yet fully physically developed...so how will the surgery affect their physical development? For the matter, they aren't fully developed psychologically, either, so how will the surgery affect them, there? If they are able to gain better self esteem, then that is very good, of course, but can there be other factors that outweigh this?
Also, the full long term effect of this surgery isn't completely known or understood yet, so, if something comes up in the future, it could affect the youngsters more than those who had surgery at a later age, as well as some effect that isn't seen in adults having the surgery, turning up with those who had the surgery before 20.

The least that can be done is to have a very good followup system, and a very good support system and well trained staff so they can mature in the healthiest way in all aspects.

[mike]

Very very interesting. I can speak from experience in dealing with my oldest daughter, as I have told you in chat. She is very much overweight, and lacks the stamina, as we all knew all to well, to get up and move. I am trying my best to get her moving, but am having difficulty in this. My other 3 kids, are totally different. They are all at normal weights for their heights, and very active. I really feel for her, because I know how it is for her. Because my eating habits have changed, hers have to, but she still needs to get moving more. I am finding when I am gone at work, and the kids are home, food is missing when I get home. I can't really point the finger at her, but I think my suspicions are correct when I think about it. I know, all to well, this problem to. I used to do the same thing. I don't want to constantly heckle her about it, but try in a delicate way to try and teach her new ways of eating, and get excercise in as well. I know that winter is hard. It has been with me to, but getting motivated enough to get off the couch has to be done in order to start getting onto the right foot. She favors the wife's side of the family, and I am thinking she is getting to the point of falling off the wagon, never to get back on. If that happens, I will blame myself. I am trying, but would love any suggestions, you or anyone else can give right now. Thanks again, for posting. I found it to be very very interesting.
mike