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When diet and exercise do not work in reducing weight, some people might be forced to turn to more drastic options, such as bariatric surgery, also known as weight loss surgery. Even though this option has more risks because it is invasive, researchers from a new study is reporting that bariatric surgery is effective. Although the study did not find how effective this option in the long-term, the researchers did observe substantial weight loss in patients three years post-surgery.

For this study, funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), researchers were interested in monitoring the effects of bariatric surgery with a relatively longer follow-up time. Since very few studies have followed patients for over a year post surgery, this study called the LABS study, aimed to track patients longer. The LABS study was started in 2005 and gathered data on different kinds of weight loss surgeries and their effects on people's health. The median weight of all the participants at the beginning of the study was 284 pounds.

The researchers reported that 1,738 people underwent the Rouen-en-Y gastric bypass surgery. This type of surgery directly connects the stomach to the small intestines. After three years, people who underwent this surgery had maintained a weight loss of an average of 90 pounds. 610 people received lap-band surgery, in which doctors use an elastic band to shrink the stomach. For these patients, average weight loss maintenance after three years was 16 percent or 40 pounds.

The researchers found that the death rate for both types of surgeries was less than one percent. However, people who had the lap-band surgery were more likely to return to the hospital for more surgery. The team calculated that 18 percent of these patients needed to get something fixed. Despite the higher chance of a second surgery, lap-band surgery was still popular because it is a less invasive procedure that has a shorter recovery period.

The researchers stated that the study was not randomized and the patients chose which surgery they wanted. The ongoing LABS study is focused on examining the effects of weight-loss surgery for teenagers. The study has already recruited 242 teenagers who underwent weight-loss surgery and were doing well a month post surgery. So far, eight percent had major complications and 15 percent had minor ones. The researchers will continue to monitor the patients over the next few years. The study was published in JAMA.