Surgeons first began to recognize the potential for surgical weight loss while performing operations that required the removal of large segments of a patient's stomach and intestine. After these surgeries, doctors noticed that many patients maintained a weight lower than their pre-surgery weight. With further study, surgeons were able to recommend similar modifications that could be safely used to produce weight loss in obese patients.

Over the last few decades these procedures have been refined in order to improve results and minimize risks. When making the choice to have surgery, there are some basic facts that you need to familiarize yourself with, starting with surgery.