A study found that bariatric surgery, including gastric bypass and sleeve gastrectomy, was more effective than just medical treatment in improving and reversing diabetes in overweight and obese patients. After 12 months, 42.6% of gastric bypass patients and 36.7% of sleeve gastrectomy patients achieved normal HbA1c levels (less than 6.0), compared to only 12.2% of medically treated patients. Many of the surgery patients were able to achieve normal blood sugar levels without the use of any diabetes medications. The study also found that the surgery patients lost significantly more weight than the medically treated patients. While some surgical complications were reported, the authors noted that long-term studies are needed to determine the durability of the findings. “This trial demonstrates that bariatric surgery can eliminate the need for diabetes medications in many obese patients whose diabetes is poorly controlled,”  lead investigator Philip Schauer, M.D. said. “Furthermore, the surgical patients showed major improvements in other measures of heart health, including reduced need for high blood pressure and cholesterol medications, while significantly boosting HDL – the so-called “good” – cholesterol.”
