Bariatric surgery reduces all-cause mortality in morbidly obese patients, when compared to non-surgical management, according to a retrospective study that included 33,540 patients and >8,000 patients who had surgery.

• Investigators compared patients who underwent laparoscopic banding, Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, or laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy to those who received medical management of their weight from a primary care physician, with the help of dietary counselling and behavior medication.
• At baseline, patients’ body mass index was 40.6 and they were followed for about 4.5 years.
• There were 2.51 fewer deaths/1,000 patient years among surgical patients, when compared to non-surgical patients.