[Surgical therapy of severe obesity].

Severely obese patients are vitally endangered by their overweight. Non operative therapies achieve less than 10% of persistent weight reductions in this high-risk group of patients. On condition of correct indications and adequate preoperative information gastric bypass, vertical banded gastroplasty or implantation of the adjustable gastric band represent effective surgical procedures enabling persistent reductions of at least 50% of overweight in 85% of patients.