The objective of this Special Report is to evaluate whether bariatric surgery improves health outcomes for morbidly obese patients. Three topics are addressed: 1) comparison of weight loss with surgery vs. nonsurgical treatment; 2) evidence on morbidity, mortality, and quality of life outcomes; and 3) whether there is a threshold amount of weight loss necessary to improve these health outcomes.

This Special Report does not assess the relative effectiveness of various bariatric surgeries. However, a companion TEC Assessment evaluates whether less-invasive procedures (laparoscopic gastric bypass, laparoscopic gastric banding) improve outcomes as compared to open gastric bypass, and whether variations on gastric bypass (e.g., bilio-pancreatic diversion, long-limb gastric bypass) improve outcomes for patients with super-obesity.