Criminal Bariatric Procedure

Introduction : One of the historical procedure was "Horizontal Gastroplasty "That was founded by Mason in 1970 as a restrictive procedure using staples dividing the stomach transversely toward the greater curvature leaving small orifice of communication between the two gastric channels.Objective: To present one of many cases who underwent horizontal partioning of the stomach by nylon thread in 2011 as a bariatric procedure.Methods: A 41 years old man presented with increasing weight of 60 Kg after bariatric procedure which was proved to be laparotomy and horizontal partioning. His weight 195 Kg and his BMI 65.9 Kg/m(2) with comorbidities (hypertension, joint problems, dyslipidemia and respiratory problem). His preoperative endoscopy shows multiple rings (chain like) inside the stomach with epithelial growth over the nylon threads while contrast study shows no any restriction.Conclusion: Believe it or not, historical bariatric procedure still performed in 3rd world countries like Iraq by general surgeons and the best description for these procedures are (criminal procedures), most of these procedures will require revision soon or later; also public health education is necessary with vigilant commitment to the guidelines to prevent these unaccepted surgical errors.