Might Surgical Weight Loss Put Bones at Risk?

By Kelley Luckstein

When diet and exercise attempts haven't worked, increasing numbers of overweight people have turned to bariatric, or weight-loss, surgery to shed pounds.

But research reported in 2009 pointed to an unintended result: One of every five people who had bariatric surgery had broken a bone within a few years.

The finding came from an early analysis of data from a study by researchers from the Mayo Clinic, in Rochester, Minn…

The researchers did not determine what caused the increase in broken limbs. Their research, presented at a meeting in June of the Endocrine Society, continues and, through a Mayo Clinic spokesman, they declined further comment

HealthDay, by Kathleen Doheny, 1/4/2010