Question

1. Gastric bypass is a procedure used for weight loss or as a treatment for gastric cancers. In extreme cases the stomach is removed entirely, connecting the esophagus directly to the duodenum. Considering a patient who has had their entire stomach removed, describe how this would impact their digestion and absorption of macronutrients. Consider both mechanical and chemical digestion and be specific in your answer. You only need to describe what would be impacted; you do not need to list what wouldn’t be affected.

Answer 1

Stomach play important role in the digestion of food. The whole stomach is removed sometime due to treatment for gastric cancer or weight loss this process is called total gastrectomy. In which the esophagus is directly connected to duodenum.

Stomach play important role in chemical digestion of food.

1. Stomach wall release the HCL acid which activate the enzyme the pepsin into pepsinogen which help in the breakdown of protein for easily absorption by intestine.

2. HCL acid break the bolus into chyme due to removal of stomach it is not able to happen

3. The HCL skill the harmful pathogen in the food.

4. Gastric lipase is not able to digest the triglyceride and not it is not absorbed by the intestine leads to malnutrition.

5. HCL also convert the dietary iron into the absorbable form, without HCl the iron deficiency occurs in the gastrectomy patient.

6. Gastric acid plays important role in the calcium absorption. As the stomach gets emptying faster. The calcium binds with unabsorbed fat causing the interference of the absorption of calcium. Lead to loss of bone density and osteoporosis.

Mechanical digestion – food in mechanical digestion converted into the small fragments, it start in the mouth, the bolus enters into the stomach and where the bolus is breakdown into the chyme (creamy paste) the muscular activity of the stomach and help the mechanical digestion for the mixing of the gastric secretion in to the food. Then the chyme into the duodenum for absorption. But as stomach is removed the mechanical digestion not take place due to the this the intestine not able to absorb the food and empty the digestive tract easily leasing to the loss of electrolyte (such as sodium and potassium) fast.

above function gets distubed due to the stomach removal.

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