Preoperative Care of the Bariatric Patient
Preoperative care of the bariatric patient starts before the patient arrives. Both evaluation and individualized risk assessment are essential for achieving best outcomes and allowing the patient to give a truly informed consent. Best preoperative care will yield a comprehensive understanding of a patient’s medical history as it pertains to predicted outcomes, cardiac health, venous thromboembolism risk, sleep architecture and pulmonary function, gastroesophageal anatomy and Helicobacter pylori status, and psychological ability to comply with required postoperative recommendations for health maintenance and to achieve success following weight loss surgery. This chapter will describe evidence-based comprehensive preoperative evaluation of the bariatric patient, discuss risk assessment to optimize patient selection and informed consent, and explain establishment of preoperative pathways.
