Weight-loss surgery may reverse common cause of infertility

Photo by: Veer

A very small study has turned up some happy results for women struggling with both their weight and their fertility. Researchers at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, in Iowa City, reached out to 20 women between 22 and 42 who had had bariatric (weight-loss) surgery to reduce their body mass index (all the women were obese before the surgery and had PCOS, or polycystic ovarian syndrome). Of the 20 women, six had been diagnosed with infertility and wanted to conceive: Three years after the surgery all had become pregnant, whether naturally or with medical help.

The study is much too small to be conclusive, but its findings are an encouraging indicator that for very overweight women with PCOS the surgery could be a path to not just better health, but improved fertility – and motherhood. The study was presented by Mohammad K. Jamal. M.D., at the recent American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery meeting.

Read this MayoClinic.com article to learn more about weight-loss surgery, including gastric bypass; and take this WebMD quiz to get an idea of whether weight-loss surgery might be right for you. If you're considering it, talk to your physician or reproductive endocrinologist at your next appointment.

Have you ever considered weight-loss surgery?

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