Important Updates from Your Health System

Central Maine Healthcare

Changing the Face of Healthcare in Maine

Home Services Bariatric Surgery Surgical Options

Surgical Options

 

If you’re obese, you’re not alone: more than one-third of American adults are morbidly obese – increasing their risk for diabetes, heart disease, stroke and other serious conditions, while keeping them from the active and happy life they deserve.

Our Bariatric Surgery Program, offers highly effective surgical options to put you on the path to success. Our board-certified weight-loss surgeons specialize in the latest minimally invasive techniques, giving you the best possible start on your journey. And with a caring team of dietitians, mental health provider, bariatric-trained nurses and other specialists, we’ll be with you every step of the way.

We offer two types of bariatric surgery:

We also offer:

Bariatric Surgery Approaches

We are highly skilled and experienced in minimally invasive surgical techniques, including laparoscopic and robotic-assisted bariatric surgery.

Robotic-Assisted Surgery

Robotic-assisted surgery enables the surgeon to have increased precision and control, especially for more complex cases. To operate the FDA-approved da Vinci ® Surgical System , your surgeon makes tiny incisions in your body and inserts miniaturized instruments and a high-definition three-dimensional camera.  Then, from a nearby console, your surgeon manipulates those instruments to perform the operation.

During a robotic-assisted procedure, your surgeon uses master controls to manipulate the instruments, and the instruments translate your surgeon’s movements into precise movements inside your body. Your surgeon is in control the whole time; the surgical system responds to the direction he/she provides.

Robotic-assisted bariatric surgery may offer many benefits including:

  • Potential for fewer complications for certain individuals
  • Less pain and scarring
  • Small incisions
  • Lower risk of infection rates
  • A shorter hospital stay and quicker return home
  • The ability to use small incisions for complex cases

Crystal Alvarez, DO
Bariatric Surgery

Blair Baldwin, DO
Bariatric Surgery

 

Laparoscopic Surgery

As an alternative to open surgery, Laparoscopic Bariatric Surgery (minimally invasive surgery) allows your surgeon to use techniques that limit the size and number of cuts, or incisions, that they need to make. It’s typically considered safer than open surgery. You’ll usually recover more quickly, spend less time in the hospital, and feel more comfortable while you heal.

Other benefits include:

  • Less post-operative pain
  • Shorter hospital stays
  • A reduced rate of infection
  • Less blood loss
  • Smaller scars