Nguyen Van T., a 23-year-old student from the United States, has regained his self-confidence and joy for life after losing 55 kg following sleeve gastrectomy surgery at FV hospital.

His lack of confidence due to being overweight made it impossible to find a girlfriend

Nguyen Van T. started showing signs of rapid weight gain when he reached puberty. He developed the habit of eating fast and consuming a large amount but would soon feel hungry again. Each time he felt hungry, patient T. would often feel fatigued and lethargic. After going to the United States to study abroad, he became acquainted with fast food, which caused his weight to spiral out of control.

With the encouragement of his family, patient T. actively engaged in doing exercise. However, his excessive weight made physical activity difficult, and he quickly became exhausted. His mother is a doctor and referred T. to several nutrition experts in the United States and Vietnam for dietary advice. Despite managing to lose a few pounds, he could not maintain his weight and quickly regained the weight.

Excessive weight makes many people feel self-conscious and insecure.

Patient T. felt extremely self-conscious about his excessive weight. He was hesitant to socialise, had few friends, and doubted that he would find a girlfriend. His weight made him feel even more lonely when studying abroad. Moreover, his weight gain put him at risk of dangerous health conditions such as high cholesterol, diabetes, hypertension, coronary artery disease, stroke, sleep apnoea, and early joint degeneration.

T. returned to Vietnam for treatment and underwent a transformation after sleeve gastrectomy surgery.

Realising the problems and potential dangers of maintaining his current weight, patient T. explored medical intervention. Of the options he considered, sleeve gastrectomy surgery at FV Hospital made the strongest impression. After researching the procedure, T. persuaded his family to allow him to return to Vietnam for surgery.

At FV Hospital, T. consulted with Phan Van Thai, MD, MSc., Head of FV’s General & Thoracic Surgery Department. The basic principle of this method involves vertically removing the enlarged portion of the stomach, creating a smaller tube-shaped organ which limits food intake per meal. Additionally, the vertical cut of the stomach removes the ghrelin-producing portion responsible for stimulating hunger, effectively reducing appetite while maintaining the satisfaction  of eating, a notable feature of the procedure.

Sleeve gastrectomy surgery is performed using laparoscopic surgery during which the surgeon makes several small incisions measuring one to two centimetres on the abdomen. Through these incisions, surgical instruments are inserted into the abdominal cavity to cut and remove the enlarged part of the stomach. The laparoscopic approach offers advantages such as reduced pain and faster recovery compared to the traditional open surgery methods.

Dr Phan Van Thai  successfully performed the surgery. After three weeks, T. had a follow-up examination and received thorough advice from the doctors regarding his eating habits: they instructed him to eat slowly, chew thoroughly, and divide meals into smaller portions throughout the day.

Mr T. patient’s stomach was much smaller after the surgery and he quickly feels full when eating. As a result, after eight months, T. has dropped almost half his body weight in fat, steadily losing weight from his top weight of 130 kg to 75 kg, and is in better overall health. This is truly a remarkable transformation for a man who used to be obese. T. is now more confident and happier.

The advantages of sleeve gastrectomy surgery in treating obesity

“Weight loss methods including acupuncture, dietary choices, exercise, and medication. These methods are suitable for patients who are mildly overweight or in stages I and II of obesity. However, for patients with severe stage III obesity, which is when the body mass index (BMI) is 37.5 or higher, it is difficult to apply non-invasive weight loss measures. In such cases, the doctor may recommend surgical options,” explains Dr Phan Van Thai.

Dr Phan Van Thai says that surgery is often the most appropriate treatment option for severely obese patients

Currently, there are three surgical options for treating obesity: gastric bypass (creating a smaller stomach pouch and rerouting it to the small intestine), gastric banding (placing an adjustable band around the stomach to restrict food intake), and vertical sleeve gastrectomy (reducing the size of the stomach by creating a tube-like shape, also known as tube-shaped gastric resection).

“The third option is widely used worldwide due to its superior safety and effectiveness. This vertical cutting technique ensures proper digestion and allows food to pass through the gastric tube to the small intestine and colon without interruption. The stomach retains its normal function,” says Dr Thai.

FV Hospital has a moderate patient load, allowing doctors to focus on examination, screening, and personalised treatment. Additionally, its aseptic operating rooms meet the international healthcare standards of Joint Commission International (JCI), ensuring a 0% infection rate for surgeries of this nature, contributing significantly to the success and safety of surgical procedures.

FV Hospital implements an enhanced recovery after-surgery protocol and a comprehensive pain management process for all patients, allowing them to walk around as early as the day after surgery. Minimally invasive laparoscopic surgical techniques, along with the use of self-absorbing sutures below the skin, results in very small incisions. If the patient’s constitution is favourable, scarring is barely noticeable or invisible.

FV Hospital’s doctors perform sleeve gastrectomy surgery

After the surgery, patients are provided a special diet for their new gastric structure carefully developed by their dedicated FV nutritionist. This diet ensures a balanced nutrition intake, sufficient vitamins, and helps patients maintain good health and long-term weight loss.

FV Hospital has performed 24 sleeve gastrectomy surgeries—one of the highest numbers performed by a healthcare centre in the southern region—and the number of patients seeking consultation and undergoing weight loss surgery at FV continues to rise.

For more information on weight loss surgical procedures at FV Hospital, please contact: (028) 54 11 33 33.

Find out more about the sleeve gastrectomy surgery