Can Bariatric Surgery Make Type 2 Diabetes Disappear?

That's the question being asked, as scientists at Swansea University's School of Medicine in Wales, prepare to study why bariatric surgery appears to lead to a disappearance of type 2 diabetes symptoms, within just a few days post-op. Bariatric surgery is the term used for weight reduction surgeries such as gastric bypass and gastric banding.

• Types of Bariatric Surgeries from the American Society for Bariatric Surgery (ASBS)
• Bariatric Surgery Overview from the Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA)

According to the press release from Swansea University, 95% of people who are morbidly obese, have type 2 diabetes. Morbid obesity is defined as having a BMI (body mass index) over 40.

• What is the BMI?
• Calculate your BMI with Calorie-count.com

In 80% of cases of morbidly obese people with type 2 diabetes who have had bariatric surgery for weight reduction, the diabetes appears to vanish within days after surgery. This is leading scientists and doctors to wonder if it is the surgery itself which is causing diabetes to disappear and not the resultant weight loss, because the symptoms of diabetes appear to resolve before any significant weight loss has occurred.

Reseachers are hoping that this study will help answer the questions of how and why excess weight leads to type 2 diabetes. This understanding may someday lead to more effective non-surgical treatments for the disease.

• Press release from Swansea University's School of Medicine

More from your Diabetes Guide...

• Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes
• Top 7 Risk Factors for Type 2 Diabetes
• What is Type 2 Diabetes?