Bariatric Surgery: A Primer for Your Medical Practice

Francis A. Farraye, MD, MSc is an Associate Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology at the Boston University School of Medicine in Boston, Mass. He is also the Clinical Director in the Section of Gastroenterology and Co-Director of the Center for Digestive Disorders at Boston Medical Center. After graduating from the State University of New York at Stony Brook, Dr. Farraye earned his medical degree from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York and his master's degree in Epidemiology from the Harvard School of Public Health. He completed an internship and residency in internal medicine, as well as a research and clinical fellowship in gastroenterology at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston. Dr. Farraye’s clinical interests are in the care of patients with inflammatory bowel disease, endoscopy in patients after bariatric surgery, and the management of colon polyps and colorectal cancer. He is studying the significance of adenomas found in patients with ulcerative colitis, management and diagnosis of dysplasia and cancer in patients with inflammatory bowel disease, and predictors of pouchitis after ileal pouch anal anastomosis. In the area of colorectal cancer, he is involved in several ongoing research studies, including modifying behavior in patients with colon polyps, identifying barriers to colorectal cancer screening, and gender differences in the tolerability of colon cancer screening with flexible sigmoidoscopy. A frequent speaker and invited lecturer on topics including the management of inflammatory bowel disease, colorectal cancer screening, and endoscopy in the bariatric surgery patient, Dr. Farraye has authored or coauthored over 150 original scientific manuscripts, chapters, reviews, and abstracts. His work has been published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology, Gastroenterology, Alimentary Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, Annals of Internal Medicine, JAMA, and others. In addition, he has developed an interactive teaching DVD on the complications of bariatric surgery and the performance of endoscopy after bariatric surgery. Dr. Farraye is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians and the American College of Gastroenterology. Nationally, he serves as Chair of the Patient Care Committee, Vice Chair of the Board of Governors, Governor in Massachusetts, and member of the Board of Trustees for the American College of Gastroenterology. He serves as AGA representative on the National Colorectal Cancer Round Table as Co-Chairman of the Standards Committee. He has served as the Chairman of the lower gastrointestinal disorders section of the Annual Scientific Program Committee of the American Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. He is a member of the Chapter Medical Advisory Committee for the New England Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America (CCFA) and is its immediate past Chairman. The New England CCFA named Dr. Farraye Humanitarian of the Year in 2003.

R. Armour Forse, MD, PhD is the Dr. & Mrs. Arnold W. Lempka Professor and Chair in the Department of Surgery at Creighton University, Omaha, Neb and the Chief of the Surgical Services at Creighton University Medical Center in Omaha, Neb. Dr. Forse was previously the Laslo N. Tauber Professor of Surgery at Boston University and the Vice Chairman of Surgery at Boston Medical Center. Dr. Forse received his undergraduate, medical, and post-doctorate degrees from McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He completed his surgical internship and residency at Royal Victoria Hospital in Montreal, where he also served as chief surgical resident. His research fellowships include experimental surgery at McGill University and surgical metabolism at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York. Dr. Forse was an Assistant Professor of Surgery at McGill University and later an Associate Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School, where he co-founded and directed the Center for Minimally Invasive Surgery and directed the Clowes Laboratory of Surgical Metabolism. Dr. Forse's clinical interests are in the areas of gastrointestinal surgery including bariatric surgery, minimally invasive surgery, trauma, care of the critically ill patient, and nutrition, including obesity. He has been involved with bariatric surgery for over 25 years and has performed thousands of procedures, including jeujuno-ileal bypass, gastroplasty, gastric bypass, laparoscopic gastric bypass, and revision bariatric surgery. His research interests currently include the development of transluminal surgery, the effectiveness of revision surgery, and the effects on nutrients on various diseases. His basic research interests include adipocyte biology as it applies to cell differentiation and proliferation in obesity, abdominal compartment syndrome in obesity, cell signaling in macrophages and Kuppfer cells, and nutrient-disease interactions. Dr. Forse is a frequent speaker on topics including bariatric surgery, nutritional support, and the treatment of sepsis. He has authored and coauthored over 380 papers, chapters, and abstracts, and has coedited 4 previous medical books. His publications have appeared in American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, American Journal of Physiology, American Journal of Surgery, Annals of Surgery, Biochemistry Journal, Critical Care Medicine, New England Journal of Medicine, and Obesity Research. Dr. Forse is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, the American College of Critical Care Medicine, and the Royal College of Surgeons in Canada, and he is a member of over 25 surgical societies.