Bowel Function After Duodenal Switch

The main questions pre-op patients usually have about DS revolve around bowel function after Duodenal Switch. These are the questions our expert surgeons will address:

Do DSers have chronic diarrhea?
Do DSers spend all day on the toilet?
Do DSers have control over their bowels?
Do DSers have to wear diapers for the rest of their lives?

There will always be patients on either end of the spectrum; some will have a lot more bowel movements then the average post-op patient and some will have far fewer or deal with constipation. The extreme issues are very rare and are dealt with by the surgeon or other medical specialists.

There is a big difference between loose stools and diarrhea. If DSers did have chronic diarrhea, they would also be having serious hydration issues. That is just not the case for the majority of patients. Most DS post-op patients have 2-3 bowel movements per day.

What the experts say...

Baltasar et al., "Gastric emptying in patients with morbid obesity treated with a duodenal switch", May 1997. [36]

81.3% of Duodenal Switch patients experience normal gastric emptying.

Gary Anthone, MD, "The duodenal switch operation for morbid obesity", Aug 2005. [9]

The average number of bowel movements per day for 43 pre-op patients was 1.9, 421 patients six months post-op was 2.7, 316 patients twelve months post-op was 2.6 and 113 patients > thirty six months post-op was 2.8.

Wasserberg et al., "Bowel habits after gastric bypass versus the duodenal switch operation.", Dec 2008. [19]

Although duodenal switch is associated with more bowel episodes than gastric bypass, the difference is not statistically significant. Bowel habits are similar in patients who achieve 50% estimated body weight loss with duodenal switch surgery or gastric bypass.

Marceau et al., "Duodenal Switch: Long-Term Results", Nov 2007, p 1428. [2]

The negative side-effects with DS were not benign. The unpleasant odor of stool and gas and the frequent abdominal bloating were the price to pay for these patients and it was a major preoccupation for many of them. However 95% of patients declared themselves satisfied despite this handicap and no one has required reversal of the procedure for this reason.

Have a look at this great resource from the American Society for Metabolic & Bariatric Surgery:
Bowel Function Changes After Bariatric Surgery