Prof. Mahir Özmen is one of the highly acknowledged bariatric surgeons of Turkey alongside his academic accomplishments that makes him a recognized international surgeon. He has published over 200 research papers with 4000 citations that carry himself to a very high H-index which is an international measure of academic performance.
He holds many international titles including the American Society of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASBMS), Fellow of Royal College of Surgeons Glasgow FRCSİ, Fellow of European Board of Surgery FEBS, etc. and acts as an international teaching and governing surgeon who trains surgeons from all around the world.
He prefers to classify bariatric and metabolic surgery in 3 branches as Sleeve Gastrectomy, Gastric By-Pass, and Gastric Duodenal Switch. He explains Sleeve Gastrectomy as a restrictive procedure that requires 70 to 75% of the stomach to be removed including the fundus that is responsible for ghrelin secretion which is the hormone that controls the appetite. In the 2nd branch of operations, he decides in between Mini Gastric Bypass and Roux-en-Y techniques according to the patient but prefers mini-gastric bypass as long as the situation of the patient permits because it is well tolerated. He explains the major differences between these methods in his video.
Prof. Özmen emphasizes the complexity of the 3rd branch of operations which is the combined procedure that is performed for patients with BMI over 50 or patients with uncontrolled diabetes type2. In his approach, he prefers a single anastomose duodenal switch proximal and clarifies the rationale as having a less bad odor and malnutrition in comparison to other techniques.
“Yes, the number of cases of the surgeon who perform the procedure is very important but it is not everything”
Although he has performed a huge number of cases in bariatric surgery, Prof. Mahir Özmen prefers to emphasize the importance of “being complete” rather than being “only a technician”, underlying reading, writing, and strengthening the academic side.
“You need Best Surgeon, very well-equipped hospital, a talented and well-educated team of surgery in order to overcome any complications”
