ASMBS Calls for Removal of BMI as a Criteria for Bariatric Surgery Eligibility
Body Mass Index ( BMI ) intended and still useful as a population measure of obesity HAS SERIOUS LIMITATIONS when making decisions as to which patients should have bariatric surgery . BMI has been used and often mis-used by the Food and Drug Administration for clinical decision-making so we need to have new standards for Bariatric surgery Beyond the BMI misconception and come up with better guidelines perhaps alternative measures that have been proposed which does not require weighing but take measures of hip circumference and height ; also the presence of severe co-morbidities such as DMII , HBP , OSA amongst other major diseases associated with obesity with a relative low BMI ( less than 40 ) specially in the presence of central obesity may be enough criteria to operate this very sick patients who won’t be operated based on an old and out of date concept like BMI and overturn once and forever this non scientific concept insurance companies use to deny very ill patients the surgery they dramatically need to restore their frail health
